《The Moon is Coming to Me》 CH 1 In the twilight sky in early July, a cloud of purple haze half-hidden the falling sunset. In the old classroom, the creaking iron fan barely blew away the pervasive summer heat. At this time, three days have passed since the county-wide final examination. The students in the Rocket Class1 of Qingshui County No. 1 High School had already flown into the summer vacation, but the teacher on the podium was sitting and staring, so they had to absent-mindedly look up at the live screen on the podium. On the screen was another classroom more than a thousand kilometers away. The Mathematics teacher of first year class of Wenhua No. 1 High School was talking about Mathematics problems passionately, and the blackboard was already filled with dense formulas. The teacher spoke very quickly, and no students raised any questions during the whole process, as if these topics could not be simpler. But for the students of Qingshui No. 1 High School, these questions were S-level dungeon problems. They were used by the perverted geniuses of Wenhua No. 1 High School to improve themselves. They were not within the scope of students from poor counties, so they didnt listen very seriously. Because they didnt understand at all. Only one male student listened attentively from the start to the end, neatly noting the problem-solving process on the blackboard in his notebook. The white T-shirt on the back of his thin shoulders already soaked with sweat, and he casually used the back of his hand to wipe away the sweat on his forehead so as not to drip down onto his notebook. I heard that the ranking for the final exam will be out tomorrow. Liu Rui glanced at the teacher on the stage who lowered his head to grade the homework, and quietly reported the gossip to his deskmate Tao Xi who was writing furiously on the side. After Tao Xi finished copying the last line, it happened that the teacher on the screen had also finished class. He put down the gel pen and closed the notebook. He did not look at Liu Rui but gave him a flat oh. Liu Rui saw Tao Xi lowered his head and picked up the pen again and again to unscrew the cap and close it, so he knew that this person here was pretending to be calm. He might be nervous enough that he dug his toes on the ground, so he said, Xi ge, because you are so clever and you have studied so much, I bet you are the first in the county. The whole class knew how much Tao Xi wanted to get the first place in the county for the final exam. This year, Tao Xi had been studying day and night like crazy, and his grades had soared to the top three. Perhaps it was because this time the countys first place would be sent to Wenhua No. 1 High School to study abroad for one year. Since last year, Qingshui County, a national-level impoverished county located in the mountainous area of ??southwest China, had cooperated with the famous national school Wenhua No. 1 High School in a remote live classroom. With the financial support from the government and enterprises, all the classrooms of Qingshui No.1 High School were installed with live streaming equipment, and students attended classes with students of Wenhua No.1 Middle School synchronously. The county magistrate dreamt of washing away the shame of the countys zero first choice2 college entrance examination through this cooperation. However, the gap between the students in the two schools was too great. The students in the parallel classes were not able to keep up with the progress of the students in Wenhua High School. Many students are deeply hit by the strong contrast, and their grades had dropped seriously instead. After half a year of running-in, Qingshui No. 1 High School decided to let the students with the top half of their grades continue to live with the parallel classes of Wenhua No. 1 High School. The teachers of the school taught other students in the school, while the students in the top fifty followed the best class of Wenhua No. 1 High School. In the entire county, it was the Rocket Class that was the most promising to be admitted to a good university . Tao Xi was a student in this Rocket Class. He closed the gel pen cap for the last time, took a deep breath, and said nothing. Only he knew that he was choking with nervousness these days. The next class was an English class. As the class bell rang, the lazy students suddenly raised their spirits. Tao Xi also straightened his back and looked at the screen with wide eyes. A young and beautiful female teacher came in on the screen. As soon as the students appeared in the audience, they began to whisper. The girls talking enviously about the female teachers nice new dress, and the boys laughing and passing glances to each other. The English teacher in their school coughed vigorously and said, Listen to the class! Only then did the students quiet down. In this years distance learning, their Rocket Class was like an invisible classmate of Wenhua Class 1. They knew the names of the teachers and many students in the first class. For example, the beautiful teacher who was teaching on the screen was named Bi Aoxue, and they even knew her nickname, it was Grand-aunt Bi.3 But they also knew that the teachers and students of Wenhua No. 1 High School didnt know them at all. They looked at the screen as if they were looking at another world. Tao Xi also stared at the screen. He was not looking at the English teacher, but seemed to be waiting for someone to appear. Lin Qinhe, are you4 addicted to being late, ba? Bi Aoxue on the screen suddenly turned her head to look at the door and said, in a tone that was not harshly reproachful, but rather some helpless ridicule. Tao Xis eyelashes trembled, pinched the pen in his hand, and looked at the screen motionlessly. The usual rules, read this prose aloud before going on. Bi Aoxue took out a book, turned a page at random, and handed it to the tall teenager who walked onto the podium. Here, the classroom of the Rocket Class at Qingshui No. 1 High School suddenly turn into commotion. The girls couldnt help but discuss the name Lin Qinhe in a small voice in surprise. The handsome boy in the white shirt uniform of Wenhua No. 1 High School took the book from the English teacher with an indifferent expression, and read the English passage above without emotion. The girls in Qingshui County didnt understand what he was saying, and they didnt know how authentic this persons spoken English was, they just looked at the boys face. Because it was so good-looking. Tao Xi stared at the screen without moving his eyes. The pen in his hand quickly jotted down the English that the boy said on the screen on paper. When he encountered a strange word he didnt know, he simply wrote a rough phonetic transcription. He had a very good memory, even if the speed of the reading was very fast, he could still write down the general idea with his memory. Soon the teenager on the screen finished reading, and after Bi Aoxue nodded, he walked off the stage and disappeared out of the screen. Xi ge, you also wrote this down. Its not necessary. This is what Grand-aunt Bi uses to punish students for being late. Liu Rui liked to call Bi Aoxues nickname, so it seemed like he was also sitting in the classroom on the screen. Tao Xi retracted his gaze from the screen, looked at the brief notes on the paper, and said a lie I practice my listening. You are awesome. Liu Rui gave a thumbs up. The last class was finished quickly. The students rushed to the cafeteria at the moment the bell rang to save time in queuing for dinner. Tao Xi was about to take off with Liu Rui when he was intercepted halfway by the class teacher Feng Yuan who suddenly appeared at the door. Liu Rui ran away unscrupulously, Tao Xi cared about his precious time, and asked with a smile on his face, Mr. Feng, what can I do for you? Feng Yuan was the head teacher of the Rocket Class and the most experienced Mathematics teacher at Qingshui No. 1 High School. He had a staid and stern personality. Students would rather offend the principal than the head teacher. He wore an old blue shirt that was mostly wet with sweat, his face was stern, but his there were a little bit of joy in his eyebrows. He coughed lightly and said, Come with me. The red sunset was overshadowed by the haze of the mountains, and in the dark purple sky, the mud-rolled playground was dusty with flying footsteps and basketball. Tao Xi walked aimlessly around the playground. The heart that was violently beating didnt seem to calm down. He didnt even notice the sound of hunger until a basketball hit him suddenly. Oh, classmate, are you okay, ba? A second year playing basketball shouted and ran to pick up the basketball. At first glance, he knew that the guy in front of him was Tao Xi from first year Rocket Class. He was thin and fragile, and at first glance, he looked pretentious5, but he was a plague god6 whose grades were abnormal and he was also abnormal when he fought and played basketball. The younger brother of the sports committee member in his class and Tao Xis sister, Tao Le were in the same junior high school. Because he bullied Tao Le last month, after being cleaned up by Tao Xi for a few days, he did not dare to go to school. The junior high school teachers of that student still protect Tao Xi who had already graduated. The second year student did not dare to provoke the plague god who had the whole school teachers as a backer. After saying a few words of sorry, Tao Xis face was still calm. There was no trace of emotion in his dark eyes, but there was a strange smile on the corners of his mouth. Is he fucking stupid? The second year whispered in a low voice, and quickly ran away with the basketball. Tao Xi glanced at the electronic watch on his wrist. It was almost time for evening self-study, so he turned and walked quickly to the classroom, too late to buy a bread to cushion his stomach. As soon as he entered the classroom, the classmates cheered and rushed up, shouting loudly to coax the rich not to forget each other. Im not wrong, Xi ge ranks first! Liu Rui grabbed Tao Xi happily as if he was the first in the exam. Tao Xi, dont forget us when you go to Wenhua No. 1 High School! Just go for a year, senior year is still coming back So jealous, I havent been out of the county yet. There will be a lot of pressure if you dont pass. The geniuses in Wenhua No. 1 High School are not people at all! Hey, the only handsome guy in our school has also contributed to Wenhua No. 1 High School. The commotion did not end until the evening study bell rang, and Tao Xi had no way to quietly study. He opened a brown-covered notebook, and on the first page, he wrote in English with his only pen: I wont try to pick the moon. I want the moon to come to me. 7 I wont try to pick the moon, I want the moon to come to me. He would always remember the day he first saw Lin Qinhe on the screen, at the end of last summer, when the twilight was approaching. At that time, he was living in a mess because of family affairs, and he had no interest in the so-called remote live broadcast classes. He always hid behind the classroom to sleep during the early of first year of high school. Feng Yuan, the head teacher, originally trained Tao Xi as a key student because this student had an outstanding junior high school grades, but he didnt expect him to look like a ghost after school started. A few days after the start of school, the Principal rushed back from Wenhua City, and talked in the scorching sun to the whole students that remote live classroom teaching would change their destiny. You will have the same educational resources as the best high school in the country, and the best teachers and classmates in the country! As long as you work hard to learn from the teachers in Wenhua No. 1 High School, you can also be admitted to the first choice, Tsinghua and Peking University! The principals generous speech touched and inspired many students, and some students even shed tears on the spot. At that time, Tao Xi was standing on the dusty playground, looking up at the mountain opposite the school boringly. His home was behind that mountain, in a village called Taoxi8 Bay. The county on this mountain was so poor that even birds didnt want to fly in, and education was so backward that no student had passed the exam for so many years. Everyone was full of hope for the remote live broadcast class, as if a rope had finally fallen into a deep well that had been closed for many years, and they could reach the sky as long as they grabbed the rope and climbed up. But Tao Xi had just felt the fate of being toyed with. He looked at the mountain and felt that he would never be able to get out. When the class bell rang, Tao Xi was still sleeping on the wooden table. The English teacher was unfamiliar with screen device and carefully adjusted it. He looked up and shouted Tao Xi suddenly. Reluctantly, he sat up straight, leaned back on the desk, and half-closed his eyes to boringly look at the brand-new screen on the podium that was incompatible with the dilapidated classroom. What entered the screen was a beautiful young woman who immediately attracted the attention of all the students. She was wearing a tailored dress, speaking fluent and authentic English that they had never heard before, sitting on the podium like a person on an audiotape. The English teachers in their school who were in charge of discipline all looked at the screen with all their attention. That was a teaching method that teachers and students had never encountered before. Bi Aoxue did not follow the textbook to explain the content of the textbook, but had a full English conversation with the students. Wenhua students answered questions enthusiastically. The atmosphere was relaxed and active, like a gathering at a foreign university. The students of Qingshui No. 1 High School gradually became silent. They found that they couldnt understand what they were saying. Those unfamiliar words and sentences were tacitly understood by the teachers and students of Wenhua No. 1 High School, but they seemed to be impossible to them. Silence spread in the classroom of Qingshui No. 1 High School until Bi Aoxue who was halfway through the class, suddenly smiled and said, Then now, I invite Lin Qinhe, who missed my English class yesterday, to come on the stage and give an impromptu English speech to our classmates in Qingshui No. 1 High School. Qingshuis students suddenly became restless. For the first time, they were pleasantly surprised to feel that the teachers and classmates on the screen knew of their existence, and the restlessness was even stronger when they saw the teenager walking on stage. Tao Xi, who never liked English, was nodding his head and about to die of boredom when he was abruptly awakened by the noise in the classroom, he yawned lazily, reached up and wiped his eyes, and looked at the screen again. He saw a tall boy in a white shirt standing on the podium, a lot taller than Bi Aoxue, who was already tall on the side. He had no expression, was not impatient to be named suddenly, nor was he nervous before giving a speech. His facial features were clear and handsome, like snow peaks in the sun under bright lights. The students at the far end are all waiting, Classmate Lin, lets start, ba. You can talk about anything. Bi Aoxue said with a smile from the side. The boy named Lin Qinhe raised his eyes and looked at the camera at the end of the classroom. On the clear screen, he could even see the changing shadows under his long eyelashes when he raised his eyes. The girls in the classroom took a deep breath in tacit understanding. Tao Xi looked at the pair of eyes that suddenly looked right at him across the screen, and inexplicably had a moment of heart palpitations. Lin Qinhe started to give an English speech. Even the students from Qingshui could understand the beginning of the speech. They listened very carefully, but the more they listened, the more they were frightened, because they found that they still didnt understand. Moreover, this boy named Lin Qinhes spoken language was not inferior to Bi Aoxue, as if he was born a native English speaker. This was the student of Wenhua No. 1 High School, and they thoroughly felt how big the gap was They didnt know at the time that Lin Qinhe was not an ordinary Wenhua No. 1 High School student. It was rare for Tao Xi to watch the live broadcast screen seriously. In fact, he couldnt understand many sentences in it, and he could barely understand Lin Qinhes dream and future. There was one of the simplest sentences that he somehow remembered for a long time. I wont try to pick the moon. I want the moon to come to me. 9 Since then, Feng Yuan, who had been worrying about how to deal with Tao Xi, suddenly found that this student seemed to have changed overnight. He was no longer taking a nap in class and started handing in homework. He was so serious that he wanted to stare out two holes on the live broadcast screen. The author has something to say: The English sentence comes from Hepburns Sabrina Raw: (huojian ban). It is a class composed of students with good grades. The teachers teaching them are all first-rate in the school. It is the class that the school most focused on. as in getting into first choice universities. There are three categories of universities: First choice universities: universities under the central ministries and commissions and some provincial universities. Including Tsinghua University and Peking University. Basically from top universities in China Second choice universities: Universities are relatively poor, and the admission score is also low. But the individual majors of individual schools are still very strong. Is a provincial university undergraduate major. Third choice universities: private and independent colleges, and the tuition is very high, about twice as much as the the other two -grandfathers sister, great-aunt (nin). the forrmal you C nice but false appearance ; pretentious flourish Referring to the bad guys who endanger the people. It is also likened to being an evil person or an evil force. in English Its a different Tao from Tao Xis name. The villages Tao is which means peach/peach tree while Tao Xis Tao is which means pottery. The Xi character is the same in English CH 2 After attending class for 10 days after the final exam, the school had finally ended. Because Taoxi Bay was far away from the countys No. 1 High School, Tao Xi usually lived at schools dorm and returned home once a month. He put the study materials and clothes into a big plastic luggage bag1 and took the county bus twice to go back to Taoxi Bay. Taoxi Bay was the furthest village in Qingshui County. The scenery was beautiful but the land was poor. The green tea trees in the terraced fields reflected on each other. When the spring rain came, hundreds of peach blossoms on the banks of the Qingshui River in the mountains were full of mists, and the flowers bloom on the stream. However, most local villagers didnt have much leisure to admire the scenery and flowers. In recent years, the Internet had attracted some idlers who came to sketch and took pictures. Several wealthy farmers had opened farmhouses. With the completion of roads in the county, more and more guests came here. Tao Xis family was on the mountain side by the Qingshui River. There was a small brick house with white walls and grey roof. His mother, Guo Ping and father, Tao Jian were both native villagers in Taoxi Bay. Tao Jian worked in other places all year round, and Guo Ping occasionally went to the villages farmhouse and tea factory to do odd jobs during her free time. His younger sister Tao Le was thirteen years old and had just had the first day of summer vacation in middle school. With sharp ears, Tao Le quickly ran out to meet Tao Xi when she heard the movement in the hallway, almost tripping over the fertilizer bag on the ground because of excitement. When Tao Xi saw Tao Le coming out, he grabbed her by the arm and hurried to the room. Dont come out, the sun is too hot today. He put down his bag, closed the wooden door, turned and looked down at Tao Les face. The little girl was a little fat and she wore a tight trousers. She had a shiny natural curly hair, and a pair of almond eyes that were smart and lively, but there was a large erythema like a butterfly on her face, spreading from the bridge of the nose to the left face. Tao Le suffered from Systemic Lupus Erythematosus2 and had been taking medicine to maintain it. Ge, I heard from my classmates that you are the number one in the county this time! You are going to Wenhua City to study when school starts! Tao Le was on vacation early, helping Guo Ping with some farm work at home and looking forward to Tao Xis return every day. The news spread quickly, and it was estimated that Guo Ping knew about it too. It saved the effort to talk to her. Tao Xi nodded, but there was no excitement on his face like when he first knew it. If it werent for Tao Le, he wouldnt want to return to this house. After sunset, the siblings took the dried tea leaves on the dojo. Later, when Guo Ping returned from the tea factory, Tao Xi was cooking in the kitchen. She picked up the enamel cup on the chopping board, drank a few sips of herbal tea and walked to the kitchen. When she was young, Guo Ping was famous for her aggressive personality in Taoxi Bay. After ten or twenty years of wasteful time and years of hard work, her skin was dark and yellow and wrinkled, her once-beautiful apricot eyes were yellow and drooping, and her personality became reticent and silent. Guo Ping looked at the son in front of her. He was born with fair skin. He grew up in the countryside for so many years and did a lot of farm work, but he was still white and clean, like those art students who came to Taoxi Bay from the city to paint and sketch. I heard Sister Zhangs son say that you are going to study in Wenhua City next year? Guo Ping sat on the stool next to the stove to face the fire. The tone was strange, didnt sound like Tao Xis mother. Tao Xi held the spatula and didnt look at Guo Ping. He didnt like the way Guo Ping looked at him. This always reminded him of his ridiculous fate behind this look. Wenhua No. 1 High School will support my living expenses. Every month, 1500. I will leave 800 for Lele to see doctor and buy medicinal products. Tao Xi said with his eyes down, his tone was not fluctuating. Guo Ping was silent and used tongs to clamp a piece of wood into the stove. The irritability in Tao Xis heart suddenly surged like a stove filled with wood. What he hated most was Guo Pings seemingly tolerant silence, which made him couldnt help but say something bad. Dont worry, I will not go to your son and ruin his life. Wenhua City is so big, where would I look for him even if I want to find him? I didnt mean that. Guo Ping said. Thats what you mean. Tao Xi sneered silently, but after that, he didnt speak any more. Tao Xi did not idle during the 30-day summer vacation. Except for some farm work, he took a fixed time every day to review the content taught by the teachers at Wenhua No. 1 High School. He also helped Tao Le with her homework. The little girl was a bit excluded in school and couldnt study. Whenever he had the chance, he would be the mannequin for the art students, and the pay was 100 yuan. Because the mouth was sweet and he was good-looking, the art students sometimes gave him some additional tips. He would also be models for some photographers, but the fees would be much higher because these photographers liked to inquire about his family situation, on the pretext they wanted to record different lives. Tao Xi knew their psychology and made up some tragic stories according to what they liked, either the father was dead or the mother was gone. Occasionally, he painted with art students, and they lent him their brushes so he painted generously. Wow, little brother3, you really havent learned how to paint? How can you paint better than what we have learned. The girls from the academy of fine arts were painting landscapes individually, but now they all leaned to Tao Xis side to see his paintings. The paintbrush in Tao Xis hand stopped, he really didnt want them to see it because he painted Lin Qinhe. In the painting, the young man in the white shirt was looking sideways and down. The peach blossoms outside the window were concealed by a bright moon. He no longer knew which Lin Qinhe he had painted. He had a sketchbook in which every picture in it was Lin Qinhe, sitting or standing, reading or writing. In fact, the real Lin Qinhe he could see was very limited. These paintings were all the moon he imagined. So handsome, who is this person? the girl exclaimed and asked. Tao Xi smiled perfunctorily, thanked them after painting, and ran away with the painting. In fact, he had liked painting since he was a child, and he was born with talent better than others. But Guo Ping once saw his paintings, and she went crazy that she stuffed all the paintings into the stove and burned them all. He was frightened that time and only dared to paint quietly after that. Later, he finally understood why Guo Ping was so angry. The summer vacation soon passed. Tao Xi left most of the two thousand yuan he earned to buy medicine for Tao Le, leaving only five hundred as extra expenses to go to Wenhua No. 1 High School. At the end of August, Tao Xi packed up his luggage and prepared to set off. Tao Le insisted on sending him out. He stroke a handful of his sisters natural rolls and flatly refused. Tao Xi didnt say a word to Guo Ping. He took the luggage and got on the bus to the Qingshui No. 1 High School. Several leaders and many teachers from the school came to see him off. The teachers surrounded Tao Xi and exhorted like an old mother, as if sending the child to the battlefield, letting him go without too much pressure, saying that it was normal for him to be unable to keep up and advising him to adjust his mentality and get along well with teachers and classmates. The Chinese teacher was an old man and had always liked Tao Xi. The old man stuffed a pack of home-made candies into Tao Xis arms and encouraged him: My child, you are excellent, not worse than the students in Wenhua No. 1 High School. You are neither humble nor overbearing, so be a little more confident! Tao Xi nodded and said thank you. He had always liked to eat candies, but even if they had them at home, they gave it Tao Le. He knew that what the old man said about being neither humble nor overbearing was actually telling him not feel inferior. But in fact, he had never experienced low self-esteem growing up. Even when he saw Lin Qinhe, he crazily wanted to get close to him, stood beside him, and became a good person like him instead of being ashamed. Feng Yuan, who had not spoken all the time, said suddenly: If you have a conflict with your classmates, dont fight. There wont necessarily be someone there to protect you. Tao Xi suddenly opened his eyes and looked at Feng Yuan. You must know that he had never had a fight in Qingshui No. 1 High School. He had always been a good student, at least in front of the teacher. Feng Yuan coughed and whispered: Dont worry about your sister, she will be transferred to Teacher Dings class immediately. No one will dare to bully her in the future. His wife, Ding Fang was a Chinese teacher in the county junior high school and also a head teacher. Tao Xi looked at Feng Yuan in silence for a while, and suddenly, he bowed very solemnly to all the teachers present and said thank you. I will definitely be the first student in Qingshui County to pass the exam. This time he was not perfunctory. The teachers sent Tao Xi to the school gate. Feng Yuan took Tao Xi, and the two of them carried large and small luggage bags. They took a bus to the nearest prefecture-level city. They ate two buckets of instant noodles at the train station and waited until midnight to get on the high-speed rail. After sitting all night, they finally arrived at Wenhua City at noon the next day. Tao Xi never went out that far and Feng Yuan also rarely went out. The two were very dizzy at the high-speed rail station for a while, and did not understand the bus and subway routes. Finally, Feng Yuan gritted his teeth and took a taxi to Wenhua No. 1 High School. Tao Xi wanted to pay the taxi fee, but Feng Yuan didnt let him. The moment Tao Xi got off the car and saw the gate of Wenhua No. 1 High School, Tao Xi felt that he was dreaming and his feet were a little soft. A big and a small couple accompanied by a big luggage bag and a small luggage bag at the school gate were a little out of place and bleak. Feng Yuan was taken aback for a while before he took out his mobile phone and made a call while Tao Xi looked up at the gate of Wenhua No. 1 High School greedily. A tall building with simple lines. The seven characters4 of Wenhua City No. 1 High School were engraved on white marble. Looking past the automatic metal door, there was a wide asphalt road, with green leaves on both sides undulating with the sound of cicadas, concealing the crimson building at the end. Tao Xi sighed in his heart, this had more style than the crumbling rust iron door in Qingshui No. 1 High School. Soon a pudgy middle-aged male teacher walked quickly on that road. Tao Xi saw this teacher on the screen for nearly a year. He was Zhou Qiang, the head teacher and Mathematics teacher of the first class. He watched the hairline on the head recede with his own eyes. The feeling of the people on the screen suddenly becoming alive was quite strange. Tao Xi squinted his eyes and raised the corners of his mouth to show a shy smile when Zhou Qiang came to him. Report! The first place in Qingshui County had come to our class! There are still 500 meters away from the classroom! In the early morning of the first day of school, a boy rushed from the corridor into the classroom at the end of the third floor of the Wenhua No. 1 High School. The students who bowed their heads all over the classroom hurriedly raised their heads. Xiao Fei, male or female? Male! The boy who reported the news was Bi Chengfei. He flew back to the desk to continue copying his English homework. The boys suddenly let out a disappointed voice. Their class was already dying and declining, and they had originally imagined a beautiful and innocent farm girl. Handsome? asked Jin Jing, the English class representative who was urging him to hand in the English homework and unselfishly pulled out the English homework book from Bi Chengfei, who was working hard. Wait! Its almost the last one! Bi Chengfei chased and wrote an option, and finally said with a sigh of relief: I didnt see it clearly, it seems to be quite thin and white. Jin Jing glanced at the empty seat behind Bi Chengfei and sighed. Bi Chengfei knew who she was thinking about, so he said in a sour tone: Even if it hes handsome, can it be more handsome than Lin Xueshen?5 Jin Jing rolled her eyes and said, Just more handsome than you. Tao Xi, who was imagined as a farm girl, was wearing a new school uniform that he had fortunately done in the morning after washing it last night, and now he was following Zhou Qiang to the classroom. After Feng Yuan sent him to the dormitory to settle down, he hurried back without stopping. Because school hadnt started, the roommates hadnt come yet. Tao Xi slept in the four-person room all night and was taken to the cafeteria early in the morning by Zhou Qiang to have a free hearty breakfast. Zhou Qiang had been tirelessly introducing the situation of the school and the class along the way, with the encouragement of dont be nervous, take it easy and you can from time to time. Tao Xi had always been a person who knew what to say in different situation6. At the beginning, he responded very cooperatively, but he couldnt do it later. He was very unaccustomed to others being too attentive to him, but finally understood why Zhou Qiangs nickname was Auntie Zhou. When passing by the hall on the first floor of the teaching building, Aunt Zhou, oh no, Zhou Qiang also took Tao Xi to stand in front of the tall glass curtain wall to admire the honor list. You see, there are a lot of students in our fClass 1 here and they will become your classmates in the future. Zhou Qiang triumphantly scanned the photos and names of the students in his class. Under each photo, there was also an aphorism like Learning without thinking is worthless, thinking without learning is perishable. Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhes photos at a glance. One was because he appeared most frequently, and the other was that he was the best-looking, but there was only a name under the photo. There were no sentences. When Zhou Qiang saw Tao Xi staring at the photo in a daze, he secretly yelled. He thought that this student from the mountain felt inferior when he saw the outstanding classmates. He took a sharp turn and led him upstairs, before he said kindly: The students in a class are lively, enthusiastic, humble and cheerful. You will definitely fit in well! This was the third time Tao Xi had listened to Zhou Qiangs lively and enthusiastic. Tao Xi raised the corner of his mouth and smiled, and said for the third time: I will get along well with my classmates. Yes, he was still a little nervous at first, but he lost his emotions when Zhou Qiang did anything like this. There was even a sense of relief when he walked to the door of the classroom. A class of students was practicing English listening for English self-study class. The moment Zhou Qiang and Tao Xi walked in, they clicked the cassette and it disappeared. Tao Xi instantly felt all the gazes fell on him. He had no intention of trying to figure out the meaning of these gazes, so he quickly glanced down the stage in the dense line of sight. Not here. Tao Xi suppressed the doubts and disappointments in his heart, and after Zhou Qiangs passionate opening remarks, he was asked to introduce himself to the class. Hello everyone, my name is Tao Xi and I come from Qingshui County No. 1 High School. I am very happy to come to Wenhua No. 1 High School to study. In fact, he had repeated countless self-introductions on the road, but now he suddenly lost his mood . Zhou Qiang was stunned, was it done? Nothing more, kids nowadays loved to pretend to be cool, or maybe he was too nervous. Zhou Qiang thoughtfully gave Tao Xi a reason, pointed his finger at the last row of the classroom, and said kindly: The last seat in the fifth row is yours. Yes, it was all tidied up yesterday. The whole class turned around and looked at the last row at the same time. There were two empty seats next to each other. One of them was added yesterday, and the other Tao Xi nodded. Just as he was about to step off the podium, a tall figure suddenly walked into the door of the classroom. He subconsciously turned his head to look over, and was suddenly nailed to the place. Lin Qinhe, how come you are late on the first day of school! Zhou Qiang said to the boy who walked in the door sadly, as if looking at his unfilial son who went astray. The unfilial son was carrying a black schoolbag behind him, one hand casually hooked the schoolbag strap while the other hand was holding a bottle of iced mineral water. There was no expression on his stern face and he said indifferently: There was a car accident on the road. Tao Xi sighed in his heart, but the expression on his face did not change. He looked at Lin Qinhe calmly. No matter how clear the live screen was, it would inevitably be distorted. After seeing it, he found that his paintings still had many flaws and he didnt make half of his pictures as good-looking at all. Zhou Qiang looked terrified, apparently believing the nonsense, and scanned Lin Qinhe up and down, left and right. After confirming that he was okay, he showed a pleasing smile. He pulled Tao Xi and said to Lin Qinhe in the tone of a supermarket salesperson selling new products: Its fine! But you just missed the new classmates self-introduction. Come, let me introduce you. This classmate is named Tao Xi, who is the first in Qingshui County! Do you think he can be your tablemate in the future? Zhou Qiang asked for an opinion, but in fact he had already put the desk next to Lin Qinhe before that. He was confident that Lin Qinhe would not refuse such trivial matters. Wont do. Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xi, his voice was without emotion. The class fell silent abruptly. The smile on the corner of Tao Xis mouth also froze. Its something like this Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease. In this disease, the immune system of the body mistakenly attacks healthy tissue. It can affect the skin, joints, kidneys, brain, and other organs. (cr: medlineplus) Сܵ =xiao didi in chinese, its seven characters: Ļеһѧ Xueshen = Learning God chinese idiom: ˵˻˵ (jin rn shu rn hujin gu shu gu hu). Generally it means refers to the ability to respond when people speak and do things. (cr: chinesepod) CH 3 Zhou Qiang didnt expect Lin Qinhe to simply refuse it, and for a while, he was very embarrassed. Turning his head, Tao Xi, who was rejected on the spot, lowered his eyes, looking like he was shocked and in despair. He couldnt bear to see the good boy was wronged, his heart was swayed so he sullenly said to Lin Qinhe: Whats wrong? The classroom is so big! In fact, there was a vacant seat in the classroom, it belonged to a student who asked for sick leave. The good boy Tao Xi cursed, damn it. If this was in Qingshui No. 1 High School, he would have already shaken his head and left. Who cared about the opinion. If he couldnt sit there, he would just fuck off. But the other party was Lin Qinhe, so it was different. He lowered his head slightly, but he raised his eyes and looked at Lin Qinhe. Pursing his lips, his eyelashes trembling inadvertently. This was what he was best at. His expressions when begging for mercy and forgiveness to the teacher after a catastrophe. He occasionally used it when making stories for those photographers so he would get more rewards. On the side, Zhou Qiang began to persuade him softly again: Try it for a week first. Anyway, we will have to change seats later. If you cant get along, we will change, okay? He winked at Lin Qinhe as he said that. Lin Qinhe twisted his eyebrows and quickly moved his gaze away from Zhou Qiangs very spicy eyes. He glanced at Tao Xi next to him. After a while, he turned around and walked towards the last row. Zhou Qiang breathed a sigh of relief. He felt that this was tacit approval and hurriedly pushed Tao Xi, while whispering: Hurry up and get ready for class, ba. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhes back. With a faint smile at the corner of his mouth, he walked to the empty seat next to Lin Qinhe under the various looks of his classmates. Lin Qinhe had taken out the wireless earphones and plugged them into his ears. He dug out a book from the drawer and studied. It looked like a math problem. From the start to the end, he didnt give attention to anything else around him. The mineral water was randomly standing on the desk. At one corner, the cold water vapor condensed into beads and rolled onto the tabletop. Tao Xi stuffed the schoolbag into the drawer and sat down. As soon as Zhou Qiang walked out of the classroom, the classroom began to become clamorous again. The previous English reading seemed to be a scene. Many people quietly looked at the last row, either just looking or discussing about it. A boy in front of Tao Xi slid around like a spinning top and smiled, revealing two rows of white teeth: Classmate Tao, my name is Bi Chengfei. I am a sports committee member of the Class 1. You can call me Da Fei ge. The girl sitting by his side smiled and cursed shamelessly,but Bi Chengfei didnt feel embarrass at all. He continued to look at the new classmate with a friendly smile, his eyes full of curiosity. Tao Xi was taken aback, bending his eyes and said, I know you. Now Bi Chengfei was stunned. He found that this new classmate looked better when he smiled. Scratching his hair a little embarrassedly, he said: Am I so famous in your Qingshui No. 1 High School? Then how come no one writes to me? He glanced at Lin Qinhe on the side and whispered, Lin Xueshen has received a lot of letters from girls in your school. Because of the remote live broadcast of the classroom, a few good-looking and good grades in Wenhua No. 1 High School were also famous in Qingshui No. 1 High School. Many Qingshui girls quietly wrote to their favorite boys to confess, and the main target was Lin Qinhe. Tao Xis complexion was unnatural for a moment. Because he was one of the girls who wrote to Lin Qinhe, and he wrote a lot of letters. However, he was not confessing, but reporting everything about him to his distant friends whom he unilaterally made friend with, as if Lin Qinhe was a distant, intimate mailbox. In order to conceal the handwriting of a boy at first sight, he bought pink letter papers and silver gel pen, drawing strokes like flowers, and said in a little girls tone that he admired him when he was reading English in English class. Told him how many people have improved, how he wanted to work hard to enter a university with him and how he wanted to know whether he was going to Tsinghua University or Peking University At the end, the word Peach1 was signed, and a small peach blossom was also painted. However, the girls in Qingshui No. 1 High School, including him, had never received a reply. Gradually everyone stopped writing. Only Tao Xi persisted. After the mid-term exam, he learned that at the end of the semester, the number one in the countys exam could go to Wenhua No. 1 Middle School for a year so he started to prepare for the exam and no longer wrote letters. Tao Xi glanced at Lin Qinhe. He was still reading, maybe because he was wearing headphones, but he didnt hear their conversation at all. He breathed a sigh of relief and said to Bi Chengfei with a smile: I know who you are because you often answer questions on the blackboard. The students who had been secretly opening their ears to listen to the last row suddenly laughed. Everyone knew that Bi Chengfei was often punished on the podium to answer questions for speaking in the class. Sometimes the teacher would yell Bi Chengfei halfway through the class, so the entire Qingshuis Rocket Class was familiar with this name. Bi Chengfei laughed, not a little bit embarrassed. Maybe it was the warm atmosphere, or maybe it was that the new classmate had a good personality, but a few lively and enthusiastic students couldnt help but get close to Tao Xi and rushed to ask him if he knew them. Unexpectedly, Tao Xi could recognize most of them. Class leader Li Xiaoyuan, Chinese class representative Zhang Mengtong, English class representative Jin Jing, and Literature and Art committee Jiang Xinyun Only now I have the real sense of Qingshui No. 1 High School with us in class. I would have paid attention to my image if I knew it. After sighing, Bi Chengfei took out a mobile phone from his pocket, quickly unlocked the screen, and changed his name affectionately: Classmate Xiao Xi, lets add WeChat and QQ. As the leader of our class and boys group, I sincerely invite you to join us as a distinguished member of the group. Other students on the side also took out their mobile phones. Tao Xi got goose bumps from the Xiao Xi and shook his head and said, Sorry, I dont have a mobile phone. The people nearby were silent for a few seconds, and Bi Chengfei was silent too. He never thought that there would be people without mobile phones in this era, but he immediately thought that Tao Xi was from the countryside, so he felt that he had said something wrong. He carefully glanced at Tao Xis expression, only to find that he was very calm, not a little bit embarrassed, and he was still turning his pen skillfully in his hand, as if he was just saying that he hadnt had breakfast. Bi Chengfei breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said, Its okay, I will tell you if theres any news! Tao Xi took the pen, smiled and said thank you. Bi Chengfei wanted to say something. However, looking at Lin Qinhe, who was obviously displeased with frowned eyebrows, he closed his mouth again. But then Lin Qinhes phone on the table suddenly began to vibrate. He glanced at the screen of the phone, frowned slightly before he picked up the phone and got up and walked out from the back door, as if he didnt want to stay here for a moment. Bi Chengfei was pardoned. Lying on the Tao Xis table, he covered his mouth and whispered: Xiao Xi, dont mind the matter of Lin Xueshen not letting you sit next to him. Its because his best friend finally got into the top 50 at the end of last semester and finally hes able to transfer to our class. He has been talking about studying and sitting next to Xueshen for a year. Zhou Qiang told Tao Xi that Wenhua No. 1 High School had tests every two months. Classes were rearranged according to the mid-term and final rankings, but most of the students in Class 1 were relatively stable, and only a few students were changed this time. Li Xiaoyuan, the class leader who patroled back and forth in charge of discipline but also talked in a small voice, pushed the black round-frame glasses and whispered: Yeah, Yakult has the best relationship with Classmate Lin. It took him a long time to get in from Class 2, but he doesnt come to class today because hes sick. This Yakult sounded like a persons nickname, and he knew him well. Hey, it turned out to be that the broken up the brothers were finally reunited. No wonder Lin Qinhe resisted so much. Tao Xi said with a guilty expression, Knowing this is the case, I should tell Teacher Zhou Im not sitting here. But he felt bad in his heart. He tried his best to come here from Qingshui No.1 High School and it was in exchange for more than three hundred mornings and nights. How could he easily let go of the opportunity to sit with Lin Qinhe? Seeing this, Bi Chengfei hurriedly comforted him: Its okay, everyone is in the same class. Lin Xueshen has always been sitting alone, anyway. Even if it us who are transferred next to him, he wont be happy. It means that Lin Qinhe was not targeting Tao Xi. Tao Xi nodded and said nothing, because Lin Qinhe came back from the back door with his mobile phone. Immediately after the class bell rang, the students scurrying in the classroom suddenly rushed back to their seats like beasts. One after another, they took out Chinese textbooks from the drawer. The first class was Chinese. Tao Xi looked to the side and saw that Lin Qinhe had also taken out the Chinese textbook, but he didnt open it. Just putting it aside for the sake of it, and studied a math competition book instead. So arrogant. Tao Xi naturally did not have the capital to be arrogant so quickly took out the Chinese textbook. His learning progress had been consistent with Class 1. Of course, the learning results had not been consistent. The Chinese teacher was He Wenjiao, a young female teacher in her early thirties, with a petite figure and a kind round face, she looked like she was only in her twenties. The students called her Sister Jiao in private. He Wenjiao walked to the podium with a soft voice: Did you miss Teacher after a summer vacation? The student below hurriedly dragged their voice and said, Miss.. Yes. In three days, everyones ability to tell lies has become more and more sophisticated. The dimples at the corner of He Wenjiaos mouth had become deeper. She casted her eyes on the last row. First of all, I want to welcome the new classmate who come to our class, Tao Xi, welcome. He Wenjiao said, looking at the only strange face in the classroom with a real smile in her eyes. Tao Xi quickly got up from his seat and happily greeted hello, teacher to He Wenjiao. He Wenjiao nodded and asked him to sit down before suddenly dropped a thunderstorm on the ground: Everyone should remember that after the final exam in the first year of high school, I sent you a full score essay from Qingshui No. 1 High School. At that time, werent many people crying? The title was The Man Who Chased the Moon. It was written by classmate Tao Xi. After each big exam at Wenhua No.1 High School, the Chinese language committee would pick out some excellent essays and gave them to all the students. The final exam of Qingshui No. 1 High School used the exam papers from Wenhua No. 1 High School. He Wenjiao also participated in the revision of Qingshui No. 1 High School. She was touched by Tao Xis composition, so she copied and distributed it. Tao Xi felt a fierce and dense looks again, shocked, sympathetic, incredible, compassionate Except for Lin Qinhe, there was no reaction at all from him. In front of him, Bi Chengfei turned around to reach out and pat his shoulder, his eyes was full of pain. Fuck! Tao Xi was instantly extremely embarrassed, and his toes were about to dig out a piece of the basketball court! Because that first-person narrative was completely fabricated by him, the protagonist I lost his mother at the age of five and his father at the age of ten, and he was poor but still strong, trying to chase his dream Tao Xi wanted to shout: Then its fucking fake! As if hearing his inner call, He Wenjiao continued: But I specifically went to the teacher at Qingshui No. 1 High School to find out, and I knew that this composition was fictitious. Tao Xi breathed a sigh of relief. The students also breathed a sigh of relief, withdrawing their confused gazes. If this was true, they really didnt know how to face this little cabbage2 with such a miserable fate in the future. A lot of people in your class can only write argumentative essays. Once they write narratives, they have no emotions. They cant move people at all. The stories are sparse and even contradictory. He Wenjiao slowly said. Some students below might be thinking of their own essays, or scratching their heads or turning their pens, and feeling uncomfortable. Some people write very wonderful argumentative essays, quotes others, and have rigorous logic, but let him write a lyrical narrative and it becomes a piece of wood with no emotions and desires, such as Lin Qinhe who reads the math competition book in the last row. Many students quietly casted their eyes on the wood in the last row, but no one dared to laugh. Tao Xi also looked to his side. He saw Lin Qinhes hand about to turn the page, frowned insignificantly, and then stuffed the competition book into the drawer. Tao Xi couldnt help but laughed, but he promised that the voice was smaller than a mosquito. But Lin Qinhe obviously heard it. He turned his face slightly and glanced at him blankly. Because he was taller, he had long eyelashes drooping when he looked at him, half covering the indifference and cold light in his dark eyes, as cool as the bottle of ice water on the table. If someone else stared at him so indifferently, Tao Xi would have to stare back, and even curse a few words when he was upset. But Tao Xi just looked back innocently, his eyes filled with I didnt laugh at you. Lin Qinhe retracted his gaze and turned over a page of the language text book casually. He Wenjiao obviously didnt intend to let it go easily, and continued with a smile: Classmate Tao Xis composition is better than his sincere feelings and simple and delicate language. Lin Qinhe, it happens that Tao Xi was sitting next to you. You can learn more from him how to write lyrical narratives in the future. When these words came out, many students were shocked and couldnt help covering their mouths. This was Lin Qinhe. His performance had always been the first place in the whole year, getting one to twenty points more than the second place. Mathematics, English and science comprehensive were all close to full marks, and Chinese was also an absolute high score. After all, most of the essay questions were not limited to a genre and the argumentative essays that were well written would still get good points. Tao Xi was just an international student from a poor county. Even if he was ranking first in Qingshui County, they knew the gap between Tao Xi and them at present. Tao Xi didnt expect He Wenjiao to give him such a big and tall hat3 as soon as he came, and she still gave it to him in front of Lin Qinhe. They were all young and frivolous. Of course, he felt a little bit proud. Writing and painting were his innate talents. He never missed his composition every time during Chinese exam. But when he thought that Lin Qinhes total score was not human, the tail that was about to be wagged dropped again. He Wenjiao was simply pulling hatred on him. Tao Xi cursed inwardly. Lin Qinhe on the side didnt say anything, probably didnt care about He Wenjiaos words at all. Tao Xi found that he couldnt laugh anymore, because He Wenjiao started to talk about this elective ancient poetry. It turned out that a group of people were asked to learn most of the poem on their own during the summer vacation. And he didnt study at all during the summer vacation. Tao Xi suddenly had a very strong ominous premonition, as if sitting on pins and needles. Sure enough, Bi Chengfei intimately told him the great news: We finished self-study of several courses of Mathematics and Science through online classes in the summer. English was originally based on Grand-aunts4 interest, and the language lesson is almost finished. ??? Tao Xi was suffocated for a while, how would he go online lessons without connecting to the Internet?! Bi Chengfei paused, and cruelly dropped another message: We are about to start school exams after this weekend and we will take the content of self-study during the summer vacation. Bi Chengfei looked at the pale Tao Xi with pity: Its okay, even if you fail the exam, the teachers and the classmates will understand you! Tao Xi said numbly: Is it too late for me to change my head now? He glanced at Lin Qinhe, who was looking at the phone with his head down, thinking that he had a good head. Bi Chengfei thought that Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe because he wanted to ask Lin Qinhe to help him with lessons. He thought that Tao Xi looked weak, but he was very courageous, so he quickly recommended himself: I can help you! As long as you dont dislike my performance in our class. He didnt want Tao Xi to be rejected by Lin Qinhe again, it would be embarrassing 2. Tao Xi was really courageous, but he hadnt dared to go against Lin Qinhe yet. He gritted his teeth and squeezed out a smile and said, Its okay, Ill help you. (tao) = Peach Сײ. Little Cabbage is a folk song tune spread in Hebei and other places in China. It uses very beautiful music materials and refined artistic techniques to create the image of an innocent rural poor girl. It profoundly expresses the sadness and pain of a girl who has lost her mother and was abused and has no support. It is also an accusation of the unreasonable family relationship in the old society (cr: google). Basically, a Chinese version of Cinderella from ñ (lit. wear a high hat): to be the object of flattery; to be placed on a pedestal (cr: purpleculture) Their English teacher, Bi Aoxue aka Grand-aunt Bi CH 4 Sure enough, in the next few classes, the teachers lesson were as fast as being chased by a dog and at some parts, the teachers simply said, I wont talk more after you have learned it during the summer vacation. Tao Xis head was full of ? Moreover, he found that Wenhua No. 1 High School couldnt be separated with electronic devices. Many students naturally took out their phones or tablets to take pictures on the blackboard during class, or directly used the tablets to take notes. Although Tao Xi had developed a very powerful note-taking ability during his one-year live broadcast study, but now he was completely down because he hadnt kept up with the progress. Could he understand and remember anything? What surprised him even more was that Lin Qinhe was also taking notes! He didnt use a mobile phone or a tablet. He just took a pen to write on a black notebook without rush or unhurriedly. He didnt even look up at the blackboard, as if he was doing excerpts as he pleased. But Tao Xi still used his 5.0 vision to look beside him countless times and roughly saw the contents of the notebook, which was indeed what was taught in class, and they were clearly organized like teaching supplementary materials. The kind that you couldnt buy it. He thought that Lin Qinhe was the kind of non-human creature that got a perfect score in the sleeping exam in class. It seemed that geniuses had to work hard, Tao Xi felt a little balanced. During Chemistry class, Tao Xi still stared at Lin Qinhes black notebook from the corner of his eyes, just like a starving person staring at the sumptuous meal, only to answer with drops of water. But as soon as the bell rang at the end of the period, the owner of the notebook neatly closed the pen and the notebook, and then took out the phone to play the game. It was actually boring. Tao Xi retracted his gaze unwillingly, struggling for a long time and still didnt say Can you lend me a notebook? He was a face-saving person, and he also had embarrassment phobia. Lin Qinhe probably would say no again, he was afraid that it was really that bad. Fortunately, Bi Chengfei was an enthusiastic citizen and very considerately lent all materials for summer vacation to Tao Xi. Tao Xi had been through the lessons for the day. There was also a natural refrigerator beside him that radiated air-conditioning for free. When he left the school building at night, he had the illusion of returning from the underworld to the sun. Most of the people in a class were day-students1.Tao Xi went back to the dormitory alone, and when he opened the door of the dormitory, he saw a little fat man holding a handful of potato chips and stuffing it into his mouth. He stood up from his chair and said vaguely to him: Hello!2 Tao Xi smiled politely. He put a large stack of materials on the table and briefly introduced himself. Obviously, the little fat man had already inquired clearly about the information of the new roommate so he did not show much curiosity. He swallowed the potato chips with difficulty, handed the bag of potato chips to Tao Xi and said cheerfully: My name is Pan Yan, can count as your new roommate. Its too lonely with only me and Old Xu! Tao Xi glanced at Pan Yans fingers stained with paint. After a pause, he still took out a slice of potato chips from the bag. He looked at the drawing board not far away and asked: Are you an art student? On the drawing board was an unfinished gouache painting. It was a painting of melons and fruits commonly practiced by art students. On the table beside it, there were a few props and fruits that had wilted. Pan Yan sighed, picked up the palette and paintbrush and sat down in front of the drawing board. He began to complain: Little friend, you dont know, my grandfather is a painter, he forced me to be an art student and asked me to enter the Tsinghua Academy of Fine Arts, but Im not good at this at all!! His dream was to open a fried chicken shop, but he rushed to work and paint here every day. Tao Xi walked to Pan Yan and watched him adjust the color for a while. Feeling that this person was not humble, he couldnt help but said: Lemon yellow has increased. Pan Yan was taken aback, and looked suspiciously at Tao Xi: You can paint? Would you like to adjust this color for me? Tao Xi was not polite, took the palette and paintbrush and adjusted the colors very skillfully. Pan Yan didnt dare to take it lightly now. He gave up his seat respectfully, and put a smile on his face to please: My roommate, can you help me add the color of this fruit by the way? Tao Xi raised his eyebrows and said, Just one, I have to do homework. Of course, you3 excuse me. Pan Yan dragged out a box of Coke4 from under the table, and put a bottle of it on the table for Tao Xi in flattery. Tao Xi had a headache facing this painting. Pan Yan was indeed not suitable for painting. The composition of the painting was problematic. The color of the background was simply a disaster. No matter how good the color of the fruit was, it was nothing more than a refreshing paint on the old wooden board. He resisted his disgust and colored the fruit with just the right shades, making the lifeless painting alive in an instant. Pan Yan opened his mouth wide. Just as he was about to brag about it, the bedroom door was suddenly opened and another roommate walked in. Old Xu! Look, this is our new roommate, named Tao Xi. He is very good at painting! Tao Xi returned the paintbrush to Pan Yan, got up and looked over. The man who came in was tall and thin, with dark skin, and wearing a pair of black-rimmed glasses. He glanced at him and said in a cold tone, My name is Xu Ziqi. Tao Xi smiled with the corner of his mouth, but narrowed his eyes, keenly discovering that this person was hostile to him. Pan Yan sighed to Tao Xi and said, If you had come a year earlier, it would be fine. At that time, Old Xu was still in the first class. You can still be classmates. Unlike me, the art class is as far away. You have to run to death if you want to play together. Xu Ziqis expression turned gloomy for an instant, and after saying Im going to take a bath first, he turned around and went to the bathroom. Old Xu seems to be in a bad mood, dont mind him. He usually isnt like this. Pan Yan said to Tao Xi empathetically. Tao Xi looked at the red-mouthed and white-toothed little fat man in front of him. He pulled the corners of his mouth and smiled. Hey, this dormitory was definitely not a good point. But Tao Xi didnt worry at all and simply refused Pan Yans request for him to continue painting. After taking a shower, he took out the materials and started learning. He wanted to cover a class of self-study for a month during the summer vacation within a week. By the way, Xiao Xi ge, I forgot to tell you that all the dormitories will turn off the lights on time at 11 oclock. Pan Yan said, lying on the bed at 10:59. As soon as the voice fell, Tao Xis eyes became dark, but this seemed to be considered good. Its okay, he brought a flashlight specially. When he was living in Qingshui No. 1 High School, he lived in a ten-person room. At night, he took a flashlight and carried a stool to the balcony to study. Although the mosquitoes bit and the cold wind blew, they were nothing. He took the flashlight and when just moved the stool to go to the balcony, he heard Pan Yan said: The dormitory is super strict and there are dormitory patrols inside and out. If they see light coming through, they will deduct discipline points from the dormitory. If there are too many deductions, you will be fined to clean the corridors and balconies of the dormitory. I did it for a semester last year! Tao Xi was speechless for a while and asked, Then how do you finish your homework? Xu Ziqi, who had never spoken much, said abruptly: A group of people can do their homework before going to bed. The tone was full of B5. Pan Yan said leisurely: Thats a class of students. Dont you also hide in the quilt and use a flashlight to catch up with your homework? When did I?! Xu Ziqi suddenly sat up from the bed like a corpse. Ah no? I had a nightmare in the middle of the night last semester. I woke up and saw light in your quilt. Was it a dream in a dream? Pan Yan said innocently. Tsk, Tao Xi understood it. Xu Ziqi had just left the first class, so he was unhappy when he saw the student from Class 1, while Pan Yan was purely unhappy with Xu Ziqi because he was also suffering6 due to him. But hiding in the quilt with a flashlight was a good way. Tao Xi ignored the two fierce roommates, took the torch and the materials, slumped into the quilt and began to study. Fortunately, the air-conditioning in the dormitory was fine otherwise it would be hot to death before suffocating. He studied a little bit before going to sleep. At six oclock the next day, he could get up on time without an alarm clock. This biological clock was trained in Qingshui within a year. However, enemy always met on narrow road. He was about to go to the bathroom but bumped into Xu Ziqi, while Pan Yan was still asleep on the bed. Obviously the master woke up only after the bell rang. The two were in a stalemate on the balcony, letting no one passed. I woke up early today because of holding pee. Xu Ziqi stared at Tao Xi and said that, wanting to cover it up. My ass. Tao Xi said: So? Want me to pee for you? Xu Ziqi choked, staring at Tao Xi with embarrassment and annoyance, and turned to enter the bathroom. After washing up, Tao Xi read the ancient poems on the balcony in the light of the sky outside. Xu Ziqi, who climbed onto the bed to pretend to be sleeping, was actually practicing English listening. When he arrived at the classroom early to study, Tao Xi realized that he was not the first one. There was a girl sitting alone and silently studying English. She didnt have deskmate, her face was as white as paper, and she did not even lift her face up when she saw him come in. Tao Xi knew this girls name, it was Huang Qing. She was a study committee member of their class. Naturally, he didnt take the initiative to say hello, so he returned to his seat and continued to read the notes while eating steamed buns and drinking milk. People came to the classroom one after another. Only Bi Chengfei was the most active, fluttering in front of Tao Xi like a moth, Good morning! I heard that Xu Ziqi is your roommate? The news was pretty clear, Tao Xi nodded and continued to read the notes. Bi Chengfei waited for a while but didnt hear what he wanted to hear, so he couldnt help but ask: What do you think of him? This tone was like a stinky boy in a gossiping class with a little sister. The little sister Tao Xi took a sip of the milk and put it down, then dropped four words: Pretentious. Pa! Bi Chengfei slapped the table violently, and the milk was almost overturned. He said happily: Right, ba! I think so too! As someone with a high presence in the class, in the first year of high school, Xu Ziqi often looked inexplicably superior. He had long been uncomfortable with him. Now that Xu Ziqi fell into the second class, he wanted to buy firecrackers. Tao Xi watched Bi Chengfei slapped the table while indignantly accusing Xu Ziqi, silently moved the milk aside and changed the subject: I heard that all of you can finish your homework before eleven oclock? Which idiot is making a rumor? Bi Chengfei was furious, and for a moment he forgot about Xu Ziqi. He snapped, How is it possible? I write until one or two oclock every day, ba! Except for one pervert, no one else in our class will go to bed before twelve oclock! As soon as the voice fell, the pervert entered through the back door. Bi Chengfei extinguished the flame instantly and said with a grin: Xueshen, why are you here so early today? Lin Qinhe ignored Bi Chengfei, did not sit down but frowned and stared at something on his desk from half a meter away. Tao Xi followed his gaze and saw that he had crossed the boundary after drinking half of the milk. Hey, really particular. He quickly moved the milk back to his table, looked up at Lin Qinhe and said, Sorry, should I wipe the table for you? This was actually mean, but when Tao Xi raised his eyes to look at people, there was a bit of guilt and caution in his eyes so it was easy for the person being looked at to feel that they were unkind. Lin Qinhe glanced at him, flatly said no need to, pulled the chair away and sat down. Bi Chengfei glanced back and forth between the two of them and said: Its tablemate, its tablemate. Its normal to put things on each other table. There are still my papers piled up at my tablemate table. Just after he finished talking, the girl named Hu Tong next to him slapped a stack of papers on his desk and cursed: Put it here and Ill chop your hand! Bi Chengfei hurriedly turned around to coax the tablemate. Tao Xi was happy, but didnt laugh, and instead quickly drank the milk. A shot dropped the cup accurately into the trash can in the corner. He glanced to the side and found that Lin Qinhe was wearing headphones again, reading a physics competition book, and the black notebook that made him envious was on the desk. This person actually engaged in more than one competition? Tao Xi had learned that in the five college subjects7 competition, there were very few people who engage in double subject competitions. Even if there were generally two subjects that were not prominent, they could take two provinces at most. Therefore, the school would only encourage students to choose the one that they were best at. And Mathematics and Physics were the two most difficult subjects with the highest influence. Bi Chengfei was right, Lin Qinhe was indeed a pervert. But such a pervert would actually take basic notes honestly during class, Tao Xi was a little confused. A new days class soon followed. Tao Xi didnt mind to try to figure out the abnormal ice sculpture next to him and rushed into the class with all his heart. But the gap lied here, even if he was a genius, he couldnt cultivate successfully overnight. By the end of the third period, Tao Xi couldnt hold it anymore. He didnt have a mobile phone to take pictures on the blackboard and screen, nor could he keep up with the teachers progress to write notes. It felt like his head almost exploded. Tao Xi casted his faint eyes on Lin Qinhes black notebook for countless times. Lin Qinhe had just closed it, and at this time he was playing with his mobile phone. Tao Xi felt that he had weighed in on the importance of academic performance and face. He was lying on the desk with his pointed chin cushioned with neatly stacked hands. He tilted his head to look at the boy on the side, lifted up his curly eyelashes, and asked in a very soft tone: Classmate Lin, can I borrow your notebook and copy it? He was not so pure when he asked Liu Rui to borrow money to buy teaching aids when he was the petty ghosts tablemate. Bi Chengfei in the front row leaned back unintentionally, and his big ears opened. Lin Qinhe swiped his thumb on the phone screen and passed the latest level of Xiaoxiaole8 successfully. A huge treasure chest and Congratulation flashed on the screen. Not bad. Lin Qinhe should have fun after passing the level. If he was in a good mood, he would lend it to him. Tao Xis mouth had a smile. Cannot. Lin Qinhe left two words coldly and didnt even look at him. Fuck. Tao Xis smile froze at the corner of his mouth. Bi Chengfei in the front row couldnt bear to listen, silently leaning his upper body forward. Tao Xi felt it was fine. It was just a small scene. He even thought to himself that Lin Qinhe said three words to himself in total, no way, no need to, cannot. Why didnt this person change his name to Lin Sanbu9? Tao Xi felt that his embarrassing phobia was almost cured. This was far from the embarrassment when Lin Qinhe refused to be his deskmate in front of the class on the first day of school. He was just about to say something to give himself a step down, when a loud noise suddenly came from the door. Yakult, you are finally here, I miss you badly! a boy in the first row shouted with a smile. Students who dont live at the schools dorm. He said this in Guangdong Cantonese dialect. (ﰡ) The formal you () Raw: լˮ (lit. Happy Water in the Fat House). It generally refers to Coke This whole sentence means Xu Ziqi is arrogant. Raw: 꼰. its from an idiom ʧ꼰㡯 (a fire in the city gates is also a calamity for the fish in the moat). the whole idiom means the bystander will also suffer. Five college subjects competition: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Informatics. I googled and its anipop/kaixin xiaoxiaole() game san = 3. Bu = no. The first no is (bxng): no way; the second no is (byng): no need to, the third no is (bnng): cannot. CH 5 Hey, you just want to drink my Yakult! A boy with natural curly short hair came in with a pile of Yakult. A pair of dark apricot eyes rolled around, handing out a few bottles of Yakult to the classmates who called him in the front row. Yakult, congratulations on finally joining our class! Class leader Li Xiaoyuan was polite, and unceremoniously took a whole row of Yakult from the arms of the natural curly-haired boy. Ei, dont finish it for me, buy it yourself. The natural curly-haired boy tightly held the drink in his arms and ran towards the last row quickly. Qinhe ge! He placed a whole row of drinks in front of Lin Qinhe as if offering treasures. He put his school bag on Lin Qinhes desk randomly and said with a smile, I cant get up in the morning, so I just came after physics class. Lin Qinhe gave a hum. His indifferent expression in the past was obviously less alienated and he handed the black note book on the table to curly haired naturally. Ah thank you! But you dont need to write it down for me in the future. I dont understand it anyway. Ill ask you when I go back. The curly haired took the note book and closed it, wrinkling his nose. Hey, why dont I know this new classmate? His eyes rolled, as if he finally found the deskmate sitting next to Lin Qinhe. Li Xiaoyuan happened to come with a form and took the initiative to introduce: This is the new transfer student in our class. Hes the first place in Qingshui County! Curly haired said oh, nodded, and said with a smile to Tao Xi: Hello, my name is Yang Duole. You can call me Yakult1 just like them. After speaking, he leaned over and put a bottle of Yakult on the Taoxi table. On the outstretched right wrist, there was a red string with golden beads woven into a peace knot2, and under the red string was a very conspicuous red round birthmark. Tao Xi stared at the red birthmark, then stared at the boys face. After what seemed like a long time, Yang Duole heard he said: My name is Tao Xi. He didnt know how ugly his face was, and it was hard to see that almost everyone next to him found that his emotions were not right. Yang Duole seemed to think this new classmate was a little weird. He blinked suspiciously, but at this time the class bell rang and the students hurried back. Yang Duole had to carry his schoolbag back to his seat. Class leader Li Xiaoyuan put the form in his hand on Tao Xis desk before rushing back, and exhorted: I forgot to give it to you yesterday. This is the information form for all the students in our class. You can fill it in and give it to me. After speaking, he ran away quickly. Tao Xi looked at the form dumbly and quickly locked a name on the form. Yang Duole, 16 years old, birthday December 25, mother Fang Sui (deceased), father Yang Zhengming Are you okay? Bi Chengfei turned his head and looked at Tao Xi worriedly. The boy sat motionless, his face was pale, and the eyes that he thought were the most beautiful were also hollow. Bi Chengfei felt that only he knew why Tao Xi was so disheartened. It must be because Lin Qinhe rejected him again. Bi Chengfei sighed and aimed at the culprit, only to find that Lin Qinhe turned his head slightly, looking at Tao Xi with his head down. But soon he withdrew his gaze and took out the English book from the drawer. His face was still expressionless. Alas, Lin Xueshen was good with everything, but he was too cold. This hurt Little Cabbages heart of Qingshui County again. Bi Chengfei, whats wrong with your head? Last time I asked you to go to your dad to register, what did Dr. Bi say? Suddenly there was a cold female voice from the podium, and Bi Chengfei, who was worrying about the pair of deskmates in the back seat, was shocked. He turned back faintly. The whole class laughed. Who didnt know that Bi Chengfeis father was also Bi Aoxues eldest brother, and was the director of the Department of Neurosurgery at Hannan Hospital in Wenhua City. And Grand-aunt Bis nickname also comes from her being Bi Chengfeis little aunt. Oh, Doctor Bi said that my head cannot be saved, its inherited from the family. Bi Chengfei touched his head and said calmly. The classmates leaned forward and backward with laughter. They were never tired of the drama of these aunt and nephew. Bi Aoxue sneered, stretched out her finger and clicked on Bi Chengfei, meaning you wait for me. She casted her gaze to the last row, and first glanced at the newly transferred Tao Xi. The child was in a daze with his head down. She frowned, thinking that perhaps the person hadnt adjusted to the new environment. Then he looked at Lin Qinhe on the side. The sun came out from the west. Not only the ancestor was not late, nor did he read other books, but instead looked at the English textbook on the table. Bi Aoxue swept her gaze to the rest of the classroom again. Sure enough, this sweep caught another person who secretly lowered his head and sucked a drink. Yang Duole, why? Want to go back when you just arrived? The boy who was named almost choked. He quickly stuffed the Yakult into the drawer, shook his head and said, Im wrong, I dont want to go back. Tao Xi suddenly recovered, these three words Yang Duole instantly tore him from the shaky memory. He raised his eyelashes and looked at the boy with a natural curl on his left front. The dark eyes were filled with sarcasm that no one could see. Guo Pings sorrowful face came to mind again, and said in the tone he hated most: He was not in good health since he was born. I was shocked. I was thinking that hospitals in big cities would be better, and they would definitely be able to take good care of him. Last summer, Tao Xi just returned to his home in Taoxi Bay with his first rank in the towns high school entrance examination. Tao Le went to his grandmothers house to play. Tao Jian just finished a part-time job, but all the money he earned was lost by playing cards. He also lost his temper at home all day long. He hid in the wood room to paint and overheard the quarrel between Tao Jian and Guo Ping. Thats my own son. Whats wrong with it if Im going to find him?! That woman surnamed Fang must have money in her family. We are raising their son so much, so its not surprising that they should pay us compensation, ba? No! You cant go to him, you will ruin him! Guo Ping rarely shouted in a fierce tone. Do you think the paper can wrap the fire3? The blood relationship is here, and sooner or later it will be discovered! I said how Tao Xi looks completely different from me. If my mother hadnt told me, I wouldnt even know that I was raising a son for others! Tao Jian cursed and laughed for a while, and suddenly asked harshly: What is the name that painter woman named my son? Guo Ping was silent and did not speak. Tao Jians violent curses followed, and the movement became louder and louder. It seemed that there was a fight. Tao Xi pushed open the door of the wood house and looked at them blankly. Guo Pings numb face finally had a crack when he saw him, and her drooping and muddy eyes were filled with fear and retreat. There was also a trace of guilt that was invisible. Tao Jian didnt expect Tao Xi to be in the wood house. He didnt have a deep relationship with the two children. He raised his eyebrows and looked at Tao Xi for a while, and irritably touched the curly and messy short hair on top of his head and cursed Guo Ping: Cant hide it now, its better to tell him honestly. Guo Ping seemed to have finally collapsed, and slowly sat on the bench, covering her face without speaking. After a while, she seemed to be about to unload a burden that had been on her shoulders for many years, and to tell the old thing that had tortured her for a long time. Sixteen years ago, a beautiful young woman came to the remote Taoxi Bay. She was alone with her luggage and painting tools. From her look and dress, she apparently came from a big city. The villagers were not surprised. Although Taoxi Bay was poor, the scenery was indeed beautiful. After a young man took a picture two years ago and went back, some idle painter and photographer came one after another. However, this woman was pregnant. It was not obvious at first, but as she lived in the village longer and longer, the villagers began to talk about this woman named Fang Sui. They thought that she might be pregnant with an illegitimate child and was ashamed to be known by her family, so she went to hide in a poor country to paint. Fang Sui was renting in Guo Pings house at that time. Guo Ping was also pregnant, her husband Tao Jian went out to work, and a capable mother-in-law was taking care of her. However, rural women could still work in the fields even if they were pregnant. On the contrary, the mother-in-law took care of Fang Sui more. After all, she could get a lot of money. Fang Sui was very beautiful, Guo Ping still clearly remembered her face. She was the kind of rich lady who had been spoiled since childhood. She had white skin and had not been tanned even after spending so long in the country. Especially those eyes, like peach petals dripping on the Qingshui River, the slightly raised eyelashes were moisturized, and they always looked innocent and affectionate when looking at people. There were a few bachelors in the village who were a little eager to move, and they were all driven back by Guo Ping who had a fierce personality. When Fang Sui was sitting in the field and painting, Guo Ping was doing farm work nearby to guard her at all times. When resting, Guo Ping sat on the ridge, weaving all kinds of things with grass, rattan or bamboo strips, and then she gave it to Fang Sui. Fang Sui would show her a simple and happy smile. There were always people in this world who were born with compassion and love, and both men and women would develop a desire to protect them. Fang Sui spoke very little. Guo Ping had lived with her for so long and only knew that she was from Wenhua City and was a freelance painter. She was even more secretive about the childs father and her parents, and would always look gloomy when it came to them. Guo Ping guessed that she might have eloped with her lover without the permission of her parents, but the lover did not come to her. As the two approached the child birth, the weather was getting colder and colder in the autumn. Fang Sui no longer went out to paint, Guo Ping no longer did farm work, the two were idle and had nothing to do at home. Guo Ping taught Fang Sui to weave, and Fang Sui was very dexterous in painting, but it took a long time to awkwardly weave a peace knot with a red string. Speaking of the childs name, Fang Sui looked at the peaceful knot in her hand with a gentle expression: I thought of a lot of names before, and I think they all have good meaning. After thinking about it, I only hope that the child will be safe, disease-free and disaster-free and have a lot of happiness, so I still think the name Yang Duole is the best. Both boy and girl can use it. That was the first time Guo Ping knew that the childs fathers name was Yang. The childrens names in their village were all simple. It didnt matter what Fang Sui thought so much, so she said, Im too lazy to think about it, just pick one at that time, its better to have bad name to feed4. Fang Sui smiled and said nothing. She went to the table and sat down before she picked up a pen and wrote on the letter paper. Guo Ping took a look and said curiously: You finally want to write to your family? Fang Sui shook her head and said, I will write to my child, and I will show it to him when he is eighteen. Guo Ping felt that the people in the city were just paying attention to it. It was not like the child would not be able to see her when the child grew up. Was there anything that she couldnt leave until then? It seemed to be a truth, Fang Sui had a very difficult day when she gave birth. Guo Ping hadnt been full-term, so she was anxious about giving birth. That day was December 25, and it was Christmas that people in the mountains didnt know or cared about. It snowed early in the mountains, and the white snow fell all over the half-mountain. The mother-in-law hurriedly invited midwives from two villages, but the three old women almost couldnt cope with them after busying themselves. On the contrary, Guo Ping gave birth to a boy, because he was born premature, he was thin and he didnt cry too loudly. There was an obvious red round birthmark on his right wrist. At that time, a midwife sighed to Guo Pings mother-in-law in a low voice: This child doesnt look good to feed. Guo Ping heard it, gritted her teeth and did not speak. She looked at Fang Sui who was about to faint in pain. Fang Sui finally gave birth to the child after 8 oclock in the evening. He was also a boy, crying loudly. Fang Sui glanced at the child, smiled and called out Le Le softly before fainted. Immediately after Fang Sui suddenly started bleeding, everyone in the room was terrified. A villager hurriedly used a tricycle to send Fang Sui to the town, but when he arrived at the clinic, Fang Sui was already out of breath. Guo Ping never wanted to think about it in those few days. She didnt go with her because she had just given birth. When she saw Fang Sui again, it was the corpse that was dragged back, quietly, holding a not-so-good-looking red peace knot tightly in her hand. Guo Ping breastfeeds the two children by herself. She found a notebook in Fang Suis belongings with some phone numbers in it. She went to a home in the town where there was a phone and made a call. The one who answered the phone was a middle-aged man. He should be Fang Suis father. Later, Fang Suis parents rushed over and cried bitterly when they saw Fang Suis coffin. Then a handsome young man rushed over. He remained silent, his eyes were red, and his chin was full of stubble. Guo Ping had packed all Fang Suis relics, including hundreds of paintings she painted in Taoxi Bay, a letter to her child at the age of eighteen, and the bunch of red peace knots. However, when the child was handed over to Fang Suis parents, she obeyed her mother-in-laws words. She named the child Yang Duole, and hoped that he would be healthy and happy. Guo Ping relentlessly gave them his son with a red birthmark. The young man who had been silent heard these words and burst into tears and choked silently. They did not stay longer in Taoxi Bay, and soon took Fang Sui and their children back. Before leaving, the Fang family wanted to give Guo Ping a large sum of money. They thanked her for taking care of Fang Sui during the time, but they also meant to shut her up. After all, this matter was not glorious. Guo Ping felt suffocated. When she breastfeed her baby before they left, she quietly held her son and wiped her tears. The Fang family never came after this, all the matters were buried under the winter snow in Taoxi Bay year after year in December. The child who was left behind, Guo Ping named him Tao Xi. Tao Xi, mom only asks you one thing, dont go find him, okay? Or, maybe you wait until he grows up to reach an adult, then go find him, okay? Tao Xi looked at Guo Ping, who was squatting on the ground and crying bitterly. From the start until to the end, Guo Ping never said sorry to him. In the end, the thing that worried and scared her the most that he would go to her biological son named Yang Duole, and that he would ruin his good life. For a moment he wanted to ask Guo Ping, Yang Duole hadnt grown up yet, but had he already grown up when they were born on the same day? He finally understood why Guo Ping was so afraid of him painting and all his outstanding performances since he was a child, why his grandmother never got close to him but loved Tao Le so much, why did a midwife who had passed away in the village whispered to him before her death: Child, you shouldnt be here. He finally understand why he was called Tao Xi and his sister is Tao Le. His mother hoped that he would stay in Taoxi Bay forever, and she would always miss the child who was blessed with happiness. When he was young, he often wondered why both his mother and grandma preferred his sister. It turned out that he was not unfavorable, but he had never been loved. Tao Xi, you read the paragraph I just said aloud. Bi Aoxue tolerated it for a long time and finally couldnt hold it back, frowning at the new student in the last row who was obviously distracted. Tao Xi returned to his senses again. He slowly stood up, but bowed his head in silence and didnt know what to say. He didnt listen, how to answer? He was about to honestly admit that he hadnt listened to the lecture when he saw a slender hand pushing an opened English textbook over. On the clean pages, there was a paragraph of English text framed abruptly using black ink. Tao Xi was stunned, and subconsciously read the paragraph out. But while he was reading it, several students in the class laughed quietly. Because his spoken English was very substandard. Bi Aoxue glared at the few snickering students. After Tao Xi finished reading, she let him sit down and didnt continue to embarrass him, even if she knew that Lin Qinhe had helped this kid in an unprecedented way. After Tao Xi sat down for a while, he realized that the English book had been taken back. He later turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe who was beside him, and said thank you softly. Lin Qinhe didnt say anything, but closed the English book again, then lowered his head and pulled out the physics competition book to read. While the nickname is because of Yang Doule always having Yakult with him, Im pretty sure its also a play on his name. Yakult in chinese is yangledou. Its something like this Raw: ֽס. its from Cong Weixi The Tenth Bullet Hole. Meaning that facts cannot be concealed. So theres actually a saying in Chinese that bad name is easy to feed. CH 6 The last class in the morning after the English class was physical education. As soon as Bi Aoxues high heels came out of the classroom, the entire classroom instantly became like a prison after the release after serving sentence, and prisoners from various labor camps rushed to and fro. Enthusiastic citizen Bi Chengfei was always thinking about the Little Cabbage that had been frosted in the back seat during class. Determined to comfort the poor child, he strode to the back of Tao Xis arm and said enthusiastically: Go, lets go to the physical education class. That is the home court of this sports committee member. Tao Xi was almost about to be put up by Bi Chengfei, and was almost speechless, I am not that bad. Bi Chengfei put his arm around Tao Xis shoulder and took him out of the door. When Tao Xi was pushed out, he heard Yang Duoles cheerful voice behind him: Qinhe ge, will you accompany me to play badminton later? He didnt hear Lin Qinhes response later. But it would certainly not be just a word. After all, for the sake of the other person, he kept a seat next to him and he wrote notes carefully, the notes that werent yet available for borrowing. Tao Xi tugged and smiled. Bi Chengfei, who had been observing Tao Xi, felt that the cabbage was not hit by frost, but it seemed to have been turned into sour pickle cabbage. Bi Chengfei rolled his eyes and went down the stairs with his arms around Tao Xi, while covering his mouth with his hands and whispered: Are you upset because Lin Xueshen didnt lend you his note but lend them to Yakult? Damn, that hit a sore spot1. The sour cabbage Tao Xi was so annoyed. How this silly big guy could always behave like a little sister? He said without a smile: Borrowing or not, Im annoyed. Bi Chengfei felt that the personality of this new classmate suddenly collapsed, but he was even more disappointed that the dialogue did not follow his own script, so he took the initiative to gossip and said: You dont know this. Lin Xueshen and Yakult do not have an ordinary relationship. Tao Xi paused for a second. Bi Chengfei coughed slightly and continued: As far as I know, Yakults mother and Lin Xueshens mother are good friends who grew up in the same yard, and their relationship is better than sisters. Unfortunately, Yakults mother passed away after giving birth to him, so the mother of Xueshen always regarded Yakult as her own son. The two grew up together. In other words, the relationship between Xueshen and Yakult is equivalent to half brother, in the words of the ancients, this is a childhood sweetheart. Bi Chengfei was in the same class as Lin Qinhe in junior high school. He knew how many little girls hearts were hurt by Lin Qinhes cold personality. Fortunately, Yang Duole was not a girl, otherwise he would have died because of jealousy a long time ago. But Tao Xi, a boy, was so sad. He actually didnt understand it. Perhaps Tao Xis personality was too sensitive, and he came into an unfamiliar environment, so his mentality would be particularly vulnerable. Thinking about it this way, Bi Chengfei felt compassion and love for this fragile new classmate and comforted him: Except Yakult, Xueshen is very cold to everyone, so you really dont need to care. He definitely didnt intentionally target you. Tao Xi took a deep breath and couldnt even say anything perfunctory. How could he not care. When he was most embarrassed and planned to follow Guo Pings intention to spend his life in Taoxi Bay, it was Lin Qinhe who let him see the light. Just like people who had lived in the bottom of a well since they were young, they would crawl out when they saw the moon that occasionally emerged from the mouth of a narrow well. He even said to himself that even if his fate was buried in the mud, he would make himself good enough that he was qualified to enter the sky and became the star beside the moon. This fanaticism that seemed to be a believers sacrifice supported him to climb out of the well with all his strength, wading through the mountains and rushing to the sky, only to find a star already surrounded the moon. The place of the star that originally belonged to him. How could he be willing. Bi Chengfei found that his comfort seemed useless, Tao Xi seemed even more unhappy. He was gone, thinking about waiting for the physical education class to ask him to watch him playing basketball. After all, the girls in the class said that watching him play basketball made them happy and was very healing. The physical education teacher was a 30-odd male teacher named Liao Yong who had always been loose in class, allowing students to run two laps to do a few exercises and then let them move freely. Bi Chengfei just waited for this moment, clamoring everywhere to call people to play basketball, but most of the boys in Class 1 were squeamish and lazy, sitting on the bench like sisters gnawing on ice cream and chatting. On the contrary, the girls enjoyed playing volleyball and badminton. Tao Xi understood why Bi Chengfei became a sport committee. At least he still loved sports. Class leader Li Xiaoyuan was a kind person. Seeing that Bi Chengfei was too pitiful, he offered: Let me do it, ba. Tao Xi looked at Li Xiaoyuan. The boy was not tall, he looked delicate, with round eyes that look a bit dull. It was really not suitable for playing basketball. As a result, Bi Chengfei was overjoyed as if he had hired a powerful sweeping monk. He exclaimed to the class leader, Thank you Yuan Shen2! Li Xiaoyuan smiled shyly, looked at Tao Xi on the side and said kindly: Classmate Tao, come and play basketball with us. Tao Xi just prepared to go down the slope to give the monitor a face and agree. After all, he was a little itchy after not playing for a long time. As a result, Bi Chengfei waved his hand to Li Xiaoyuan and whispered: My back table3 is weak and cant take care of myself. Let him watch us play, so as not to hurt my heart and my body. Fuck, your grandma was weak and couldnt take care of herself. Li Xiaoyuan glanced at Tao Xi again. This new classmate was quite tall, but his skin was white, his skeleton was slender, and he was beautiful. It really didnt look suitable for playing basketball. It would be bad if he made him feel inferior in basketball. He nodded with approval and said, Classmate Tao, just watch us play by the side. Be careful not to get hit by the basketball. Tao Xi said with a dry smile, Thank you for reminding. Bi Chengfei begged his father to tell his grandmother4 to bring in two boys named Yuan Hao and Cao Xuan, and finally dragged Tao Xi to the basketball court. As a result, he collided with Class 2 on the only basketball court that was free. Class 2 had always been upset that they were pressed down by Class 1. They had been dissatisfied with this group for a long time, especially those who fell from the Class 1 like Xu Ziqi. Seeing Bi Chengfei was like sparks falling into the oil pan, there was a burst of sparks splashing around. Why dont we two classes have a game? The sports committee member of Class 2 was Gao Mada, and his tone was awkward. Xu Ziqi glanced at Bi Chengfei, and Tao Xi, who was watching the play on the wall next to him, said in a strange manner: They dont have enough people. Isnt it bullying if you fight? Bi Chengfei suddenly jumped up like a cat with its tail stomped on: Fight, fight. Who is afraid of who. Wait, give me 5 minutes, I will call someone over again! The harsh words were let go, but when they were looking for someone, they withered again. Some boys saw Bi Chengfei coming and even hid their faces and backed off, saying, Dont look for me anymore, I dont want to get sweaty. Hey, listen to what the man said? Tao Xi glanced at Yang Duole, who was sitting on a bench not far away. To be exact, he had been quietly watching Lin Qinhe, who was next to him. After the previous free activities, Yang Duole took Lin Qinhe to the convenience store to buy two ice creams, and eating it one by one. Lin Qinhe was sitting next to him, playing on his mobile phone, probably playing Xiaoxiaole again. Tao Xi smiled silently, lowered his eyelashes to cover the gloom in his eyes, turned around and said to Bi Chengfei, who was unable to find anyone, Why dont you try Lin Qinhe? Bi Chengfei was taken aback for a moment. With an incredible trace of it on his face, he shook his head and said, Xueshen will not agree with me. Tao Xi frowned and asked, He cant play basketball? Bi Chengfei shook his head like a rattle: Xueshen is on the school basketball team. If he cant play basketball, no one in our school can play, but he will definitely not agree to play with us. As for why, Bi Chengfei didnt say anything. Tao Xi saw Yang Duole finished the ice cream and picked up the badminton racket on the side. He said to Bi Chengfei: How can you know if you dont try it? Just tell him, as long as he accompanies you to win this basketball game, youll talk less and quarrel with him less from now on. Bi Chengfei was stunned, looked at Tao Xi with a strange look and said in shock: How do you know he thinks I am noisy? Everyone thinks you are noisy. Bi Chengfei hesitated for two seconds. In a blink of an eye, seeing Xu Ziqis stupidly stabbing him with a dogs eye again, he suddenly lost any hesitation. He raised his leg and rushed over, stopping the two who were going to play badminton. Tao Xi stood under a tree and looked over there quietly. Bi Chengfei hands and feet were dancing while talking, but Lin Qinhe was always indifferent. Tao Xi felt that Bi Chengfei would really not please this person. But at this moment, Lin Qinhe glanced at him suddenly, Tao Xi was taken aback, but before he could react, the cold gaze went away. Not long after, Bi Chengfei ran back happily, and Lin Qinhe stood up and bowed his head to say something to Yang Duole. Bi Chengfei embraced Tao Xis shoulders and said excitedly: Your method is really useful! Shutting himself up in return of playing basketball didnt hurt his self-esteem Tao Xi asked in a low voice, How did you tell him? He was very suspicious that the guy had sold him. I told him you told me that you want me to tell him that as long as he plays basketball with me this time, I wont bother him in the future. Fuck, can you ban matryoshka doll5? Had it not been for Lin Qinhe had already walked over, Tao Xi really wanted to shake Bi Chengfeis head to hear how much water there was in it. Bi Chengfei grabbed Tao Xi like an old hen, and greeted Lin Qinhe all the way to the basketball court like a dog. After arriving, he looked at the Class 2 team proudly, vividly interpreting what was called a fake tiger. The basketball team of Class 1 finally managed to get 5 people, but Class 2 even had 5 substitutes. And yet, when Lin Qinhe came, the arrogance of the two parties instantly changed. Looking in the mirror, putting on lipstick, snacking, and chatting. The girls from Class 1, Class 2 and even other classes in physical education came together after hearing the news, and it was very lively for a while. The people in Class 2 didnt expect Lin Qinhe to come. Who didnt know that this guy didnt even bother to play with his classmates? They looked at each other a few times, all wanting to retreat. But the words were released by the sports committee, so they poked and winked at the sports committee. The Class 2 sports committee tried to save face. Not to mention, his little girlfriend was still watching, so he decided to give himself a step down6 before playing: Bi Chengfei, we just want to play casually, but you ask the great god of the school team to come here to play. Isnt this a foul? Except for Lin Qinhe who had spare capacity to play basketball as a pastime, the school basketball team was almost composed of students with special skills in sports, relying on this bowl of rice to pass the college entrance examination. Even they were in Class 2, they were the top 100 who depended on their grade. How could they compare with the members of the school team? Just as Bi Chengfei was about to reply, Lin Qinhe laughed lightly. With a deep voice, he spoke: Which rule says that people on the school team cant play here? The second class sports committee member hurriedly smiled and said, No, no. Then he patted the shoulder of Xu Ziqi, who hadnt spoken since Lin Qinhe came, pretending to be ridiculed: Old Xu, you cant just go easy on them just because you were in Class 1. Obviously using Xu Ziqi to save their face. Xu Ziqis complexion was complicated, but he still didnt say anything. Tao Xi was dragged here by Bi Chengfei. When he wanted to retreat when they were about to play, Lin Qinhe suddenly turned around and handed the phone to him. ? Tao Xi didnt react, looking at Lin Qinhe in a daze. Lin Qinhe looked down at him, frowned with pretty eyebrows, his tone was a bit impatient: You asked me to compete, cant you help me hold my phone? Oh. Tao Xi later reached out his hand and took the mobile phone from Lin Qinhe. He walked out of the court with his mobile phone expressionlessly, feeling that all his senses were focused on his hand. He touched Lin Qinhes hand just now, and the temperature was a little higher than his hand. Tao Xi walked to the edge of the basketball court to watch the game with fewer people. The girls in the two classes had already begun to consciously become a cheerleader, chanting slogans loudier than the other. For the sake of fairness, the boys in Class 8 invited as referee. The Class 2s player for the jump ball was Xu Ziqi, and Class 1s was naturally the tallest and most powerful Lin Qinhe. After the game started, Lin Qinhe won the offensive right without any suspense. After passing the ball in a tacit understanding with Li Xiaoyuan, he won the first two points with lightning speed, and the morale of Class 1 immediately rose. When Jin Jing and the other girls broke their voices, the girls in Class 2 rebelled in an instant and screamed Lin Qinhe with the girls in Class 1. Knowing that Lin Qinhe was on the school team, Tao Xi was not surprised by his performance. It was indeed a sledgehammer for him to play with Class 2 scum. Another unsurprising thing was that Bi Chengfei had grown into a big and tall man, but his hands and feet were uncoordinated. On the basketball court, he looked like a donkey from left to right. He had no other effect except making people laugh. But what surprised him was Li Xiaoyuan. This very delicate little boy was like a changed person when he got on the court. His amazing jumping ability completely made up for his lack of height, and he cooperated with Lin Qinhe quite tacitly. If it was not for the second class that was not really good, and adding that Lin Qinhe and Li Xiaoyuan were there, Tao Xi could imagine how miserable Bi Chengfei would be beaten. While watching Lin Qinhe, Tao Xi was analyzing the situation on the court, and suddenly heard a voice beside him: Student Tao Xi, is Qinhe ges cell phone with you? ĺĺ. lit. mention the pot that doesnt boil (idiom): to touch a sore spot; to talk about sbs weak point (Shen): god. So its God Yuan Basically Tao Xis desk is behind him. I cannot find the English word for this so literal translation it is. (qi di di go ni ni) = To beg everywhere. Its from The Jin Ping Mei / ƿ÷ (Eng: Plum in the Golden Vase or The Golden Lotus) written by Lanling Xiaoxiao Sheng Internet slang referring to the infinite loop behavior that prevents others from constantly composing a material and topic. For example the multi-layer reposts on Weibo. In this case, its the way BCF told him about what he told LQH lol ̨ (lit. Take a step down) = Give people a chance to transition from a very embarrassing situation or state to a less embarrassing situation. CH 7 Tao Xi turned his head abruptly and saw that Yang Duole was already standing next to him with a bottle of mineral water in his hand. He had just watched the game so seriously that he didnt even notice it. He pursed his lips and subconsciously squeezed the phone in his hand, not covering the first moment of hostility in his eyes. But Yang Duole didnt seem to notice it. He blinked and said to him: Ill hold it for you, and give it to him when the game is over. Tao Xis first reaction was to refuse. But he had no reason to refuse. He felt that he was a little childish. He just helped Lin Qinhe hold a mobile phone, but acting like a child who was awarded a candy by an adult and was reluctant to let go. He finally handed the phone to Yang Duole unwillingly. Yang Duole took it, casually clicked on the screen to check the time, then stuffed it into his pocket, watching the fierce basketball game while chatting with Tao Xi very familiarly: Eh, Tao Xi, do you play basketball? Tao Xi was silent for a while before replying, A little bit. Yang Duole nodded and sighed softly. He wrinkled his nose: I envy you, I want to play basketball too, but I am not in good health. Once in junior high school, I played basketball and suffered from a pneumothorax1 and had surgery. It hurt me so much. As soon as the voice fell, Lin Qinhe made another three-pointer and the audience was full of enthusiasm. Yang Duole also cheered and said happily: Qinhe ge is so amazing! Tao Xi felt very upset. Listening to Yang Duoles speech was a hundred times more irritable than listening to Auntie Zhou. Obviously he didnt say anything annoying, but Tao Xi just felt that he couldnt breathe. He stared directly at Lin Qinhe who was dribbling the ball on the court, tightly holding the empty hand, trying to suppress the irritation in his heart. Xu Ziqi was also irritated. Bi Chengfei was not good at playing ball, but had a very bad anger. He rolled his eyes angrily with winking eyebrows. Class 2 sports committee finally got the ball and quickly passed it to Xu Ziqi, who was not far away. Xu Ziqi was shocked. After he got the ball, he was about to shoot directly but Li Xiaoyuan appeared halfway. He was afraid that this terrifying little boy would grab his ball again, so he hurriedly threw the ball in his hand toward the opponents rebound when he was a step away from the three-point line. But the route was obviously skewed, and it flew directly towards the person standing beside the basketball hoop. At the moment when Xu Ziqi pitched the ball, Tao Xi knew that the ball was bound to fly towards him, he could withdraw quickly, and could even carry one Yang Doule. But then he saw Lin Qinhes gaze, looking at Yang Duole on the side with worry. With a muffled sound, the girls all couldnt help exclaiming. The basketball hit Tao Xis head, and naturally Yang Duole was blocked. Although Tao Xi subconsciously raised his hand to block the ball, it still hit his right forehead. Hit by a basketball, he reached out and touched the wound through the bangs. It was a little bit stinging, but there was no change in the expression on his face. Fuck, Xu Ziqi, did you fucking do it on purpose! Bi Chengfeis irritable voice came, and then he asked loudly, Xiao Xi, are you okay, ba? Tao Xi put down his hand and raised his eyes to look at Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe curled his eyebrows and looked at him, but he didnt have the worry that he had just looked at Yang Duole. He was even colder than ever. Tao Xi shook his head to Bi Chengfei, and smiled faintly: Its okay. He suddenly felt bored and mean. The frightened Yang Duole was able to recover. He patted his chest in fear. He just wanted to say something to Tao Xi, but Tao Xi had already turned around to pick up the basketball that had fallen to the ground. Bi Chengfei died of anger, staring at Xu Ziqi and yelling to avenge Tao Xi and continue to fight Class 2, but Yuan Hao in his team suddenly said to him with a bitter face: Sports Committee, I got a kick when I ran. I guess I cant play anymore. Bi Chengfei walked over and looked at Yuan Haos ankle. He didnt see where it was swollen, but he still said, Then you go to the infirmary and have a look. Ill find someone to continue fighting. Yuan Hao ran away hurriedly. But where was there a substitute for Class 1? Bi Chengfei raised his eyes and saw that the group of boys in his class who were watching the game among the girls turned their heads to look at the sky and the trees, just not looking at him. Fuck, how could this be! Tao Xi took the ball and walked in front of Bi Chengfei, his face calmly said: I will substitute. Bi Chengfei was taken aback, holding Tao Xis shoulders with both hands, with a touch of expression on his face: Xiao Xi, thank you for coming forward for me, but I really cant bear to let you suffer. Fuck, Tao Xi felt the goose bumps on his body scrambling to come out. Li Xiaoyuan wiped the sweat from his forehead and panted slightly: Or, just end it. With classmate Lin here, I dont think the opposite party really wants to continue fighting. The group of people in Class 2 stood side by side panting. They really didnt want to fight anymore, they were just playing in physical education, didnt expect it to be a battle between two classes. It also had alarmed Lin Qinhe who was not easy to provoke. It was really not worth it. Tao Xi waved Bi Chengfeis hand away. He glanced at Lin Qinhe who walked to the edge of the court to find Yang Duole to take a drink. He curled up his mouth and smiled: Why not playing? I cant get hit for nothing, can I? Bi Chengfei thought so too, nodded and said: Okay! Dont worry, I will take care of you later! Just dont mess with me. The first game was simply abandoned because of the accident. Tao Xi crouched down and fastened the laces of his very old sneakers. When he got up, he saw Lin Qinhe coming over after drinking the water. He moved his wrist and smiled at Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe glanced at him and then looked away. This time, Class 2 also got a substitute, the jump ball was replaced by the sports committee, and Class 1 was still Lin Qinhe, who again won the ball without surprise. Li Xiaoyuan tacitly received the ball from Lin Qinhe, guarding the ball and rushing towards the opponents rebound, but the Class 2s new substitute was obviously strong. When he was about to pass the ball to Lin Qinhe, who was almost under the basket of Class 2, he cut off the ball in one fell swoop and passed it to Class 2s sports committee with a wave. The Class 2s sports committee seized this rare good opportunity. After receiving the ball, he pressed into the opponents three-second zone under the cover of his teammates. He didnt pay attention to Bi Chengfei, who was trying to defend, as long as he avoided Lin Qinhe and Li Xiaoyuan, he could score points! But when he was about to shoot the ball, the ball in his hand was suddenly cut off by one person, and under the cover of Li Xiaoyuan, he got outside his three-point line in a few steps. He was about to turn around to block, the man raised his hand almost one meter from the three-point line and threw the ball without hesitation. Class 2 sports committee suddenly hoped that Xu Ziqi of their team could grab a rebound from Lin Qinhe. But the ball hit the rim with great precision, without a chance to grab a rebound. The audience boiled instantly. Fuck! Bi Chengfei yelled excitedly, his gaze at Tao Xi was shocked, and he gave a respectful thumbs up, Xi ge is awesome! Tao Xi hadnt touched the ball for a few months, and he was a little surprised. He subconsciously looked at Lin Qinhe on the side, his mouth was slightly tilted, and couldnt help being a little proud. Lin Qinhe glanced at him lightly and whispered Good shot. Tao Xi wanted to show off instantly. After the touch came up, Tao Xi played more and more smoothly. After covering Lin Qinhe and taking another three-pointer, the atmosphere of the audience reached a climax again. A group of this improvised team of only five people, even though there was member like Bi Chengfei and Cao Xuan who had an average strength, but because of the tacit cooperation of Tao Xi, Lin Qinhe and Li Xiaoyuan, Class 2 points were left behind almost all the time. The slogan of girls from Class 1 had changed from Class 1, Class 1, absolutely extraordinary to Class 1, Class 1, double the points. The basketball game ended with no suspense. The second group was beaten and lost their temper. Fortunately, the bell rang as soon as the period was over, and people watching the game left the playground and rushed to the cafeteria. Literary committee Jiang Xinyun and English class representative Jin Jing both had mineral water bought from a convenience store in their hands. They were planning to give it to Lin Qinhe, but when they saw that Lin Qinhe already had the water handed by Yang Duole, they ran to Tao Xi and Bi Chengfei. Jiang Xinyun handed the water to Tao Xi first, and said with a smile: Thank you, you were so handsome just now! Tao Xi glanced at the bottle of water. He had seen it in the convenience store. A bottle was twelve yuan, worth his one days meal in Qingshui No.1 High School, so he hesitated to accept it. He smiled and said thank you to Jiang Xinyun. Because he had just finished playing, his white face was still sweaty, and he finally became a bit rosy. When he laughed, the corners of his eyes and eyelashes were moisturized. Jiang Xinyun was stunned, lowered her eyelashes a little embarrassedly and said youre welcome. Jin Jing glanced at the extra bottle of water in her hand, and had to throw it to Bi Chengfei who was aside. Bi Chengfei was flattered because of a water bottle. This was the first time in his life that a girl gave him water after playing basketball. And it was from Jin Jing, the flower on high peak2. Just as he was about to open his mouth to give a hundred-character testimonial, Jin Jing rolled her eyes and said, This is for Lin Qinhe. Send you the waste for recycling. The waste recycling station grieved: You buy water for Xueshen every time, but dont dare to send it out, why bother? Its better to give it to me. There were too many girls who wanted to send water to Lin Qinhe, but they had never succeeded, not entirely because there was always Yang Duole, but also because they simply did not dare. Jin Jing gave Bi Chengfei a vicious look, and took Jiang Xinyun, who didnt want to go, to run away. Bi Chengfei sighed to himself: The falling flowers are yearning for love, but the heartless brook ripples on3. Is my little ditch bad? Maybe it will become the sea in the future? Then he patted Tao Xi on the shoulder and said, Xi ge, Im going to help Physical Education teacher tidy up the equipment. You dont have to wait for me to eat. Tao Xi nodded and agreed. He thought it was right to play just now, at least Bi Chengfei finally changed his name. He turned and walked towards the cafeteria with the water, only to see a person who he didnt want to see standing under a tree not far away. It was Yang Duole, who called out his name, raised his hand and waved at him a few times. Tao Xi paused and walked towards Yang Duole, holding the water bottle in his hand. Tao Xi, thank you for blocking the ball for me just now. If it werent for you, I would have been hit. Yang Duole never had time to say thank you to Tao Xi so he waited here after the game. Tao Xi looked at Yang Duoles face expressionlessly. Those eyes were inherited from Guo Ping, while the natural curls were inherited from Tao Jian. Obviously he looked very similar to Tao Le, but he was extremely disgusted with this face. He raised the corner of his mouth and smiled, the smile did not reach the bottom of his eyes: Youre welcome. Youre welcome, he did it on purpose, just to let Lin Qinhe take a look at himself. However, this kind of boring behavior instantly became the opposite in front of Yang Duole. Yang Duole stood closer, and asked worriedly: Then have you hurt? That ball seems to be hit hard. Tao Xi did have a wound on his right forehead. It was blocked by his hair and could not be seen. He had almost forgotten it, only remembered about it because of Yang Doule. However compared to the injuries he had suffered before, this hurt him more. He took a half step back without a trace, just about to say No to send Yang Duole away, but then he suddenly saw Lin Qinhe walking towards this side. So he stretched out his hand to slightly open the bangs on his forehead, touched the wound with his finger: It seems to be a little painful, but it shouldnt matter. On Tao Xis exposed white forehead, there was a wound that was completely red and swollen because of broken skin and sweat infiltration. Yang Duole took a deep breath and said anxiously: You are injured and swollen so much, how can it not matter? Ill accompany you to the infirmary for treatment At this time, Lin Qinhe had already walked to Yang Duole, and looked at the wound on Tao Xis forehead. There was no emotion in his eyes. Tao Xi put down his bangs and pretended to be empathetic and smiled: Ill just go by myself. You can go to the cafeteria for dinner. There will be no good food when its late. Yang Duole asked, You just came to our school. Do you know where the infirmary is? Tao Xi shook his head and said, I dont know, but I can ask. Yang Duole showed a look like this, and said to Lin Qinhe on the side: Qinhe ge, you should go eat first, ba. I will accompany Tao Xi to the infirmary. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe, a smile curled up at the corner of his mouth and said in a brisk and natural tone: Tablemate, would you like to accompany me to the infirmary, ba? Yang Duole was stunned. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe with a smile on his face, but his nails were tightly pinched into his palms. It seemed that after about three seconds that seemed like a long time, Lin Qinhe looked at him and said: Okay. A pneumothorax is a collapsed lung. Pneumothorax can be a complete lung collapse or a collapse of only a portion of the lung. It can be caused by chest injury, lung disease, ruptured air blistered, and mechanical ventilation. The flower on high peak is used as a metaphor for things that can only be seen from a distance and cannot be touched, that is, things that can only be longed for but are out of reach for oneself 仨⣬ˮ (luhu yuy, lishu wqng) = a chinese idiom that means one side is willing, yet the other one remains indifferent (usually of unrequited love) CH 8 This was the first time that Lin Qinhe agreed to Tao Xis request. He did not say no way or cannot for the first time. Tao Xi even had an illusion of auditory hallucinations. For a moment he thought to himself that this was just an ordinary request for Yang Duole, but he was like a baby. But he still couldnt help being happy. He tried to suppress the smile at the corner of his mouth, but he couldnt hide the brisk footsteps. He felt that he had snatched Lin Qinhe from Yang Duole. Although there was only a little time, it was enough for him to be happy for a long time. This was even worse than when it rained heavily on one day in his third grade. At that time, he was happy to see Guo Ping holding an umbrella at the school gate to pick him home after school. However, he soon discovered that Lin Qinhes path was not the shortest way to the infirmary. On the first day of school, Tao Xi remembered the map of Wenhua No. 1 High School clearly with good memory. The infirmary was in the southwest corner of the school. The nearest road from the school field was through the Baihui Garden. The road that Lin Qinhe took obviously had to make a big turn. Could it be that this man was a road idiot? Tao Xi turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, he couldnt help but said, Lets go around like this, ba. But as soon as the words came out, he regretted so much that he wanted to bite his tongue and killed himself. Fuck, even the joy was full of sorrow. He also told Yang Duole just now that he didnt know where the infirmary was. Lin Qinhe turned his head and glanced at him, with a look in his eyes, as if he was expecting him to expose himself1 and asked knowingly, Do you know the nearest way to get there? Tao Xi was taken aback, suddenly a little annoyed. He didnt hold back the sloppy anger and choked: Did you do this deliberately? After finished speaking, he felt that his tone was not right. With a big turn in the tone, he said in a low voice, aggrieved: Intentionally or not, as long as youre happy. No. Lin Qinhes tone seemed a little speechless, and continued, I dont like Baihui Garden. Tao Xi was startled and asked in confusion, Why? Are there not many beautiful flowers there? As its name suggested, the Baihui Garden2 was meticulously planted with various flowers and plants. It was fragrant throughout the year. On the day Taoxi arrived at Wenhua No. 1 Middle School, Zhou Qiang also took him and Feng Yuan around the campus. At that time, he saw that there were many pink roses in the Baihui Garden, and he also thought that he would have time to sketch in the future. Lin Qinhe frowned, as if thinking of something that made him uncomfortable. Tao Xis mind turned quite fast now. He asked: You dont like flowers? Lin Qinhe gave a hum, frowning his brows. It seemed that he not only disliked it, but disgusted of it. Oh, it turned out to be like this. Tao Xi nodded. What he thought was, it was over. Every letter he wrote to Lin Qinhe was painted with peach blossoms. He even sent a gouache painting of peach blossoms and flowing water on the Qingshui River that he painted and titled the painting Lin Hua Manxi3 with great wit. Fucking accurately stepped on thunder. Fortunately, he pretended to be a babbling girl in the letter. After arriving in the infirmary, the female school doctor in her forties seemed to know Lin Qinhe. She smiled at him and nodded, then looked at Tao Xi and asked curiously: Are you his classmates? I dont seem to have seen you. Tao Xi sat on the chair and brushed off his bangs with his hands, wondering if it was a good thing to be recognized by the school doctor. But he replied obediently: I just transferred. His tablemate. The words his tablemate were pronounced briskly by him, as if it was a very glorious identity. It was a pity that the school doctor didnt continue to ask. She took the medicine and cotton swab to clean Tao Xi wound while asking Lin Qinhe: Xiao Juanmao4 hasnt gotten sick recently, right? The obvious in the question was Yang Duole, and it seemed that Lin Qinhe often accompanied him to the infirmary. Tao Xis briskly jumping heart sank instantly, his lips tightly pressed. Lin Qinhe stood aside and said, He had a fever a few days ago, but he comes to school today. Hey, that kid is really too weak. Tell him, its gonna be fall soon, so use less air conditioning, dont The school doctor was about to continue telling something, but she heard the kid whom she was treating exclaimed in exaggeration: Doctor, you do it slowly, it hurts me. She was stunned. She had dealt with this kind of small wound too many times, and no boy yelled like that. Moreover, her hands are always very light, so she said, Just bear with me and it will be fine. Boys dont be so squeamish. Your classmate Maos body is weak but hes strong. Fuck, Tao Xi was so angry. Looking at Lin Qinhe, it was clear that he still had that expressionless face, but no matter how he looked, he felt that this person was laughing at himself. After coming out of the infirmary, Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe on a detour to the canteen. After a long silence on the road, he suddenly said, When I was a child, I used to play on the mountain. You probably didnt know that there are so many snakes and insects on the mountain. The thin snake is not poisonous, but the long weird one is scary. It is easy to get bitten when you go to the mountains in summer. Lin Qinhe didnt respond, obviously not interested in this topic. Tao Xi continued to make gestures without giving up: I went to the mountain to chop ragweed in the fifth grade of elementary school, and I was bitten by that kind of snake. I did a simple treatment of the wound, and calmly cut the ragweed before going to the old Chinese doctor in the village to get some herbal medicine. After finishing speaking, he was afraid that Lin Qinhe didnt understand what ragweed was so he explained, The hogweed is the grass for the pigs. The pigs in our place dont eat feed. He didnt feel ashamed of life in the countryside, he was only anxious to prove one thing. So? Lin Qinhes tone was flat. Tao Xi choked and said anxiously, So I am not afraid of pain, nor am I squeamish! For him, being said to be squeamish was much more serious than saying that he was poor. That belonged to the personal attack! He carefully endured his bad temper and put away the thorns all over his body, just to make Lin Qinhe think that he was also very good and well-educated. This time, a school doctor said that he was more squeamish than Yang Duole. This was intolerable and unbearable! Lin Qinhe stopped suddenly, looked down at him slightly, and asked in a cold voice, Youre not afraid of the pain. So when the ball came, you could avoid it, but you deliberately ran into it? Tao Xi froze in place for an instant. The blood in his body seemed to disappear suddenly and a few seconds later it suddenly rushed to his brain. Lin Qinhe saw that his eyes were bright and calm, but he felt as if he was cut open and there was no room for a bit of sophistry. Obviously, he was the best at making nonsense and perfunctory remarks, but in front of Lin Qinhe, it seemed that he couldnt do it. He clenched his fingers tightly, his throat was astringent, and he said, I just want to find a chance to talk to you, and want to bebecome friends with you. He said the word friend with difficulty, but he felt that the word seemed not enough. He wanted to hear Lin Qinhe say anything other than no to him, and wanted to know Lin Qinhe as well as Yang Duole. What else he hadnt thought of it yet. If you really want to be my friend, you should be in the top fifty in the midterm exam and stay in the first class. Lin Qinhe looked at him indifferently, It is not easy for you to come to Wenhua No. 1 High School. Dont waste time doing things that dont make sense. If you have something to say, say directly to me in the future, I will listen. Dont use this boring way, let alone use Yang Duole. Lin Qinhe turned and left after saying this. Tao Xi stood still, and it took a long time to find the air and start breathing quickly. He stretched out his hand to cover the gauze just taped on his forehead. He was obviously not afraid of the pain, but the wound suddenly became sharp and painful. The pain became more and more painful, until the heart seemed to be rubbed hard by a hand, and his vision began to blur. He suddenly remembered that when he was ten, the seven-year-old Tao Le was playing with the water pipe in his grandmothers house and forgot to turn off the tap, causing the water from the pipe to flow into the cellar containing sweet potatoes. After Guo Ping knew that, without questioning, he took a bamboo cane and chased him. He cried and said that it was not him but Tao Le. He even begged the grandmother who knew the facts to testify. But grandma only hugged Tao Le in silence and did not protect him at all. Tao Le did not dare to admit it because of fear. Guo Ping beat him severely. He had forgotten the pain of the swinging cane on his body, but the feeling of aggrieved heartache was still fresh in his memory. Just like now. He was so wronged. The phrase Dont use Yang Duole made him so painful that he couldnt even breathe. Lin Qinhe didnt wrong him, he did use Yang Duole. Lin Qinhe knew that it was not easy for him to come to Wenhua No. 1 High School, so he should not waste time doing meaningless things. But Lin Qinhe would not know that he was the meaning of his hard work here. Lin Qinhe didnt even know that he should be Yang Duole. He should have Lin Qinhe. From that day on, Tao Xi never dared to talk to Lin Qinhe anymore and no longer secretly glanced aside during class. After class, he devoted himself to his homework. In physical education class, he also sat on the bench like a sister, reading and studying, no matter how Bi Chengfei encouraged him not play. After studying at night, he quickly rushed back to the bedroom with books and materials, as if there was a dog chasing behind. Then he discovered that Lin Qinhe hadnt changed much. From beginning to end, he was jumping around like a flea, and now he stopped jumping, Lin Qinhe was still in peace and quiet. Several days passed, Bi Chengfei also found something wrong. Xi ge, how do I feel that you are becoming estranged with Xueshen? Bi Chengfei picked out the garlic from the dinner plate with his chopsticks while saying that. Tao Xi had finished lunch a long time ago. He was studying Mathematics teaching materials. He was silent for a while, and said, I have never been familiar with him. Bi Chengfei let out a cry, but he always felt that there was still some resentment in Tao Xis words. He originally thought that the relationship between Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe would be better after the last time he played basketball. These days he sat in the front of them and felt the low air pressure between the two tablemates at the back. Oh, I feel akward to turn around and talk to you now. My tablemate doesnt like to talk to me, Im suffocated. Tao Xi turned a page and said lightly: Did you forget what you say to Lin Qinhe for him to play last time? Bi Chengfei was taken aback, but he really forgot. He sighed faintly: I am the little mermaid in Andersens fairy tale. I found the sea witch to exchange a beauitful voice for a pair of walking legs. As soon as he finished his words, he saw the witch and Yang Duole on the opposite side walking towards the cafeteria after eating. He was guilty and beckoned and said with a smile: Hi Xueshen! Hi yakult! Yang Duole smiled and replied: Hi Feifei! In a blink of an eye he recognized Tao Xi who was sitting across from Bi Chengfei. After a pause, he smiled and said hello: Hi Tao Xi! Tao Xi sat stiffly, only nodded, staring at the pages of the book in his hand. Only when the two people completely walked past him, his body finally relaxed. Bi Chengfei happened to finally finish eating. The two of them also went out after putting their dinner plates. The summer heat in early September had not yet dissipated, but there was already a faint fragrance of osmanthus in the air. The road from the canteen to the teaching building was called Yinggui Road. The name was simple, because there were cherry blossom trees on one side and sweet-scented osmanthus trees on one side. It could be seen that the school loved to plant some flowers. Tao Xi thought that Lin Qinhe really did not match the characters of Wenhua No.1 High School. Sure enough, he saw Lin Qinhe and Yang Duole turned to a corner and walked on a path in front of him. Do you know why Lin Qinhe doesnt like flowers? Tao Xi asked suddenly. Bi Chengfei was taken aback, it took a while for him to react and replied: Xueshen seems to have a serious pollen allergy. Our middle school class once organized a spring outing to a botanical garden. Only xueshen didnt go. It seemed that Lin Qinhe didnt fool him before. How do you know this? Bi Chengfei wouldnt let go of any chance to gossip. Because I stepped on thunder. Tao Xi said. Inadvertently stepped on it many times. Bi Chengfei still wanted to dig into it but was stopped by Tao Xis words. ¶ showing horse feet. To expose oneself, to reveal hidden truths Baihui Garden = Hundred plants Garden Lin Hua Manxi = The forest is full of flower. Lin Qinhes Lin ()means forest Little Curly aka Yang Duole CH 9 Tao Xi went back to the classroom alone, because Bi Chengfei had to ponder his skills at noon every day since he became addicted to playing basketball last time. When he arrived at the classroom, there was more than one hour left during the lunch break. Many people went to the coffee shop and milk tea shop to have fun, and some went to club activities, so there were not many students in the class. But for Tao Xi, even that crowd didnt make him feel as impatient as Lin Qinhe did. Lin Qinhe was absent at noon a few days ago. Maybe he went to the school basketball team to play, but today he was here for the first time. Lin Qinhe was sitting on the chair reading a book with headphones on. This time he was not reading a Math or Physics competition book, but a Book of Excellent Narratives book. Even if you could only see the side face, you could see how reluctant the reader was, frowning and turning pages quickly, as if looking at something uncomfortable. It was estimated that He Wenjiao forced him. He Wenjiao looked gentle and amiable, but he was no more annoying than Bi Aoxue. Tao Xi walked lightly to his seat, thinking about whether to take the materials and find another place to study, but was stopped by Jiang Xinyun, who was setting up a blackboard at the back of the classroom. Tao Xi, can you copy the blackboard writing for me? I think your writing is pretty good. Jiang Xinyun held a simple draft of the blackboard newspaper in his hand and looked up at him eagerly. My handwriting is average, ba Tao Xi glanced at the blackboard with only a drawn frame. He was not very willing. He could study a lot of content after a lunch break for more than an hour, so he wanted to tactfully refuse. Although Lin Qinhe hurt him by saying what he said last time, he was right. If he wanted to stay in the first class after the midterm exam, he had to be admitted to the top fifty. Its not average. We have seen your full score essay throughout the year. The essay is well written and the characters are very beautiful. Jiang Xinyun was often responsible for blackboard newspapers. She had studied calligraphy for many years and was considered a very picky person. When Tao Xi listened to the full score essay, his whole body was agitated. So they read it for the whole year? This was a fucking public sentence, right? He glanced at Lin Qinhe, who was looking at the Book of Excellent Narratives. Then Jiang Xinyun continued in a begging tone: Help me, I still have to draw, its too late to copy the characters. Tao Xi couldnt stand the girls acting like a baby and wanted to refuse, but he thought of the twelve yuan bottle of mineral water that Jiang Xinyun gave last time. The hand that took other possession was soft1, just help, ba. Just because he didnt have to uncomfortably sit next to Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi agreed, and Jiang Xinyun happily gave him a draft picture. At first glance, it could be seen that it was a Japanese comic style blackboard newspaper designed by a little girl. The large pink cherry blossoms and castles made the girls heart to the extreme. Just copy this text in this area. Ill draw the main part of the drawing next to it. Jiang Xinyun put on a pink apron and picked up the gouache palette and paintbrush. So particular, it was also painted with paint. The blackboard newspaper of Qingshui No.1 Middle School was done by drawing a few circles and writing a few words at random with chalk. Tao Xi took his chair, put a piece of paper before stepping on it and started writing on the blackboard. There were not many words to write. He finished it in only ten minutes. Jiang Xinyun was still painting the castle, and she seemed to be dissatisfied with how she painted it. He couldnt help but feel anxious when he saw this kind of sluggish painting, so he said Ill do it, and then took the paintbrush from Jiang Xinyuns hand and started painting. He was the best at this kind of flower and tree scenery. After all, he had painted peach blossoms along the Qingshui River many times with many art students. In less than 30 minutes, Tao Xi finished drawing the entire blackboard. Jiang Xinyun had been handing paint beside him, and many students who were originally reading also frequently looked back. The large cluster of cherry blossoms turned into different shades of pink, and the attic with green tiles and gray walls was looming in the shadow of endless flowers. It was clearly approaching autumn, but when looking at the blackboard, it felt that April was not over, and the spring was as deep as the sea. After Tao Xi got down from the stool after painting, he realized that he was being watched again like a monkey. Jiang Xinyun looked at him with a strange look in her eyes, half-bowed her head to say thank you. Tao Xi shook his head and said, Youre welcome. Im going to wash my hands. Then he quickly left the classroom and rushed to the bathroom. After washing, he returned to the classroom and glanced at Lin Qinhe first. This person was no longer reading an essay book and replaced it with a Physics competition book, but his face still looked stinky. Tao Xi quietly walked his seat. He moved his chair like a dog and was about to sit down when he suddenly heard a cold voice saying, Wash the paint first. ? Tao Xi was taken aback, didnt he wash his hands? He made sure it was clean. Bi Chengfei in the front row turned around and kindly pointed his finger at his sleeve. Tao Xi looked sideways and saw that the right sleeve of his white shirt uniform was stained with pink paint, just a small piece. Fuck. An unnamed fire rose in his heart. Lin Qinhes pollen allergy was real, was it possible that he also had pigment allergy? This disgusting tone successfully pierced every sensitive nerve in him. Tao Xi glanced at the large cherry blossoms on the blackboard behind, then glared at Lin Qinhe, sarcastically replying, Dont worry, I am not Ma Liang and his Magic Brush!2 Then he turned around and strode out of the classroom to wash his sleeves in the bathroom. Bi Chengfei tilted his head and pondered for a while before suddenly explained to Lin Qinhe, who had a stinking face, Xi ge has very cleverly used the allusion of the magic brush Ma Liang. It means that the pictures he drew will not become real, so the flowers on the blackboard behind will not Shut up. The little mermaid3 shut his mouth, made a zipper movement with his hand to his mouth, and then turned back to cry secretly. After this, Tao Xi still continued the cold war with Lin Qinhe, unilaterally. He was also struggling these days because the exam was about to start soon. He just went through the content he didnt learn during the summer vacation, but there were still many unsolved problems, and there was not enough time to dig deeper. He was not happy in the dormitory either. After that idiot Xu Ziqi hit him in the last basketball game, he not only did not apologize, but also became more yin and yang4. If he were in Qingshui No. 1 High School, he would have cleaned up the yin and yang people. But he still endured it, because Feng Yuan said that no one would protect him in Wenhua No. 1 High School. Pan Yan didnt embarrass him, but it was annoying when he always begged him to help drawing flowers and fruits. In order not to be completely isolated in the dormitory, he had to sometimes refuse it and sometimes agree with it. There was also Jiang Xinyun, who ran over every once in a while. Today she asked him to help draw a handbook, and she would borrow his Chinese composition tomorrow. He was not good at rejecting girls, and he was not good at dealing with girls who acted coquettish, because Tao Le always coquettishly begged him and he had never successfully refused once. The first-semester exam was not a large-scale exam. It was just a test for the self-study during the summer vacation, and it would not be ranked. Therefore, the examination room was their respective classes, and the seats were not adjusted. Instead, there was a little bit gap between the tables. But it was still terrible, because it took one day to complete the exams of foreign language, Mathematics and Science, from 7:30 in the morning to 9:30 in the evening, like a marathon. When Tao Xi was running the marathon, there was always someone putting the pen in advance beside him, which made him even more anxious. When the final exam papers were collected, he slumped directly on the desk, feeling like he was dead. Bi Chengfei patted his head: Xi ge, get up and move the table. After the exam, the separated tables was put back in place. Tao Xi twisted his stiff neck. He stood up and saw Lin Qinhes table, which was half a meter away from him, had been cleaned up and the person had walked away. He moved his desk to Lin Qinhes desk. When the edges of the two desks were about to meet each other, he heard Bi Chengfei say: Xi ge, we can change seats on Monday. Lets be tablemate, ba. Bi Chengfei recently had a quarrel with his deskmate, Hu Tong. The two were in a cold war. The cause was that Hu Tong threw the mineral water bottle that Jin Jing gave to Bi Chengfei last time, thinking it was a trash. Tao Xis hand paused, and two seconds later, he continued to move the desk over. The edges of the desk came together tightly. Changing seats in a class was very casual. Students could make appointments with classmates they wanted to sit with. The head teacher, Aunt Zhou, thought that as long as it didnt affect the lesson, they could sit anywhere. The only time he forced students was when he asked Tao Xi to sit next to Lin Qinhe, who never had a deskmate. On the first day of school, Zhou Qiang also told Lin Qinhe that if he didnt fit in for a week, he would change seats. Tao Xi forgot this subconsciously. Xi ge? Do you want to refuse me too! Bi Chengfeis face looked dejected. He had just been rejected by Jin Jing for the countless times, and Hu Tong seemed to have found a new tablemate. Talk later, ba. Tao Xi was a little confused as he picked up his schoolbag and prepared to run. Bi Chengfei didnt let him go: I heard that Yakult and Xueshen talking today, he will sit with him this time. You guys dont agree with each other anyway. We sure get along! He continued to persuade, but found Tao Xis expression on the verge of crying, but when he blinked again, it seemed to be an illusion. When Tao Xi returned to the bedroom, Pan Yan was taking a bath in the bathroom, while Xu Ziqi was talking on the phone. Listening to the conversation, it looked like he was talking to his parents. Well, I have finished the exam today. Its okay The paper is relatively simple The results will only be available on Monday This time it will not be ranked, but it should be no problem to enter the top 50 Then I have to wait for the mid-term exam to change classes Now there are more seats in the first class, but it will definitely be reduced next time When he said the last sentence, Tao Xi knew that Xu Ziqi took a look at him. As if he didnt hear it, he took out a set of papers and continued to do exercise. Todays papers were not simple for him. He should not have a big problem with Chinese. English was barely possible. The earlier basic questions in Mathematics were good, but he didnt have enough time to solve the last questions of the last two big questions. He had gone through the content of the Science comprehensive questions this week, but the problem was the difficulty of the question had increased. On Sunday the next day, the school puts a half-day break in the afternoon, but the whole students in the class were obviously a little restless during the morning class. During the end of period, girls were discussing where to go in the afternoon, either the pottery class or flower arranging class, and the boys were discussing which game to play, either the arcade or racing game. Most of the students in Wenhua No. 1 High School were from generous middle-class families. For Tao Xi, in the past, apart from studying, he was either helping the family with farm work or earning extra money during the vacation. He had never heard of these activities. He didnt care either, because his mind was all about changing seats. When the first period was over, he decided to talk about it after the second period, and when the second period was over, he wanted to talk about it after the third period, so it was postponed to the third period. This was the last chance, to say that he would change seat on Monday. Tao Xi propped his head with his left hand and drew circles on the paper with a pen with his right hand, quietly looking at the side with the corner of his eyes. Lin Qinhe was answering the Math papers that Aunt Zhou arranged in the last class. The speed was like copying the answer. He mustered up his courage, and was just about to open his mouth when Bi Chengfei suddenly handed a folded paper crane from the front. His tone was very envious and his eyes were a bit wretched: Jiang Xinyun gave it to you. She definitely wants you to be her tablemate. Tao Xi was taken aback and took a look at the paper cranes. The very delicate pen writing on it was Lacking tablemate? and signed Vivian. It took him a long time to realize that this might be Jiang Xinyuns English name. He frowned, took the pen and wrote the two words No shortage underneath. After thinking about it, he solemnly added the two words Thank you, and then folded it again. He gave it to Bi Chengfei, asking him to pass it on. Just now, Bi Chengfei quietly saw the words written by Tao Xi, and gave him a look that worthy of being a good brother. Tao Xi finally understood what Jiang Xinyun probably meant these days, but he didnt want to provoke some peach blossoms. This was something that Lin Qinhe said was meaningless. However, writing a note might be a good way. Tao Xis spirits shook and he quickly tore a small sheet from the paper. When he was struggling with what to write, the class bell rang again. They were all piled up by the paper cranes. The fourth period was English. He didnt dare to pass a small note in Bi Aoxues class, and so he finished the class honestly. The fifth period was the schools club time, which was equivalent to a half-holiday, so as soon as Bi Aoxue left, the whole class was like herding sheep. They simply packed up their school bags and swarmed out of the classroom. Bi Chengfei was from the Bridge Club5, and he told him that he hadnt seen him running away with his bag. Lin Qinhe was still sitting aside writing math papers. Tao Xi raced against time to write a small note, but then Yang Duole ran over with music sheets and said, Qinhe ge, lets go to the orchestra together. It seems that we are going to practice a new piece of music today. At that time, Tao Xi had just finished writing Can I continue to be your tablemate when he heard Yang Duoles voice. He held the pen and suddenly stopped. He didnt think this note makes any sense. Then he heard Lin Qinhe say: Wait until I finish this question. Tao Xi rubbed the piece of paper into his palm, put down his pen and walked out of the classroom quickly, without hearing Yang Duole say: Didnt you always do your homework at home? its from the idiom (ֶ) but the author used soft() instead of short (), so Im not really sure either. But anyway, this whole idiom makes sense in this context. It means that when you get favours from someone, its hard to speak out against them PR (lit. the Magical Brush Ma Liang) is a Chinese fairy tale. In short, Ma Liang got a magic brush and everything painted using that brush will become alive/real. There are a lots of foreign adaptation of this fairy tale. If yall forgot, Bi Chengfei is called the Little Mermaid because he exchanged his voice for Lin Qinhe to join their basketball team during the gym class earlier (chapter 6) Another slang. Something like sarcastic. The example of yin and yang person from google: Normal person: Awesome! Yin and Yang: Really, then you are really awesome Contract bridge, or simply bridge, is a trick-taking card game using a standard 52-card deck. In its basic format, it is played by four players in two competing partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each other around a table CH 10 As soon as Tao Xi left the classroom, he shredded the paper and threw it into the trash can. He didnt join any clubs, but he also didnt want to go back to the classroom so quickly. So he just wandered around in the Qiushi Building. Most clubs classrooms were in the Qiushi Building. Tao Xi saw a Comic Club, a Go Club, a Street Dance Club, a Movie Club, a Science Fiction Club There were so many clubs that he hadnt seen them before. He looked around for a meeting and picked out a few posters of clubs he was interested in in the newspaper shelf on the first floor. He planned to go back to study carefully and read which club he was interested in. Before long, he unconsciously followed the music and walked to the rehearsal hall of the Symphony Orchestra on the top floor of Qiushi Building. Standing in the dark corner by the door, he saw Lin Qinhe playing the piano through a small piece of glass. But soon he saw Yang Duole playing the cello not far away. Everyone in the orchestra performed their own role. The expressions on their faces were confident and calm, as if they were born in a concert hall wearing a Chinese costume. The musical notes from different instruments were wonderfully blended into melodious music under the command. Tao Xi hadnt heard this song before, he just stared at Lin Qinhe, just as how he stared at the live screen in the class of Qingshui No. 1 High School. It took a long time for Lin Qinhe to appear on the screen once, just as how long it took for the moon to be full moon once in the sky. But every full moon, Tao Xi engraved the moon into his heart. Now he was standing in a dark corner across a door, awkwardly imitating Lin Qinhes gesture of playing the piano with his fingers, as if returning to the dilapidated classroom in Qingshui No.1 High School. Lin Qinhe was still more than a thousand kilometers away from the screen, and he could only awkwardly copy Lin Qinhes words with a pen and draw Lin Qinhe with a pen. He was clearly standing outside the door not far away, but he seemed to have never entered Lin Qinhes world. Suddenly, Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe who was playing the piano slightly turned his head and looked at the door where he was standing. He ran into Lin Qinhes sight. At that moment, his hand clenched tight, but he quickly realized that the corner where he was standing was very dark and could not be seen clearly, and Lin Qinhes sight quickly returned to the score, confirming that it was just an illusion. Tao Xi left the orchestras rehearsal hall. When he reached the first floor, he put the pile of posters in his hand back into the newspaper rack and then returned to the empty classroom. He walked to his seat and sat down. He took out the final examination papers of Wenhua No. 1 High School that he had asked Zhou Qiang before. At that time, they didnt use the papers of Wenhua No. 1 High School in the Qingshui County final entrance exam, so as not to hit the county students. Tao Xi had already squeezed out the time to finish the Language, Mathematics and Science papers. He took out the unfinished English papers and was about to start to do it, but he smelled a faint fragrance of flowers. He put down the pen and smelled it carefully, and found that the fragrance of flowers came from the drawer of Lin Qinhe next to him. Tao Xi hesitated before he bent down and looked at Lin Qinhes drawer, and found that there was a red rose wrapped in pink translucent paper, tied with a snow-white bud ribbon, and there was a pink envelope next to the flower. He guessed that the girl who had a crush on Lin Qinhe took advantage of the club activities and secretly came over here. But dont even think about it. Lin Qinhe would definitely go home after finishing the club activities. If he found it the next day, the flower would have wilting already. Moreover, Lin Qinhe hated dead flowers. There was actually someone who stepped on thunder more accurately than himself, and he suddenly gained a sense of balance. Tao Xi didnt care about the rose. He wanted to remind Lin Qinhe about it tomorrow morning so he continued to do the paper. What was the relationship between the activities of the club activities and him? All of them needed money, and they couldnt add points for the college entrance examination. It was better to engage in learning. After all, he was not a person with a good family background. As he was answering half of the English paper, the closed back door was suddenly opened. Tao Xi was taken aback, turned his head and found that it was Lin Qinhe who was about to walk in with a sheet of music. Dont come here! Tao Xi shouted loudly without even thinking about it. Lin Qinhe frowned and looked at him, but he still stopped, standing at the door and did not enter. Tao Xi pointed to Lin Qinhes table and said, You dont like flowers? Someone gave you roses and letter. They are in your drawer. Do you want me to take away the flower for you, or do you want to cover your nose and take it away yourself? Lin Qinhe frowned deeper when he heard the words and slight disgust was in his eyes. He said coldly, Take away everything for me. Both flowers and letter were taken away. Tao Xi was startled, and his thorns stood up inexplicably. He chuckled lightly, biting hard: Others spent half a day writing a letter and carefully selected a rose. You dont even look at it and throw it away. Dont you even care about other peoples minds? The tone was very choking, but Tao Xi couldnt help but empathize with the girl whom he didnt know who she was. He thought of so many letters he had written, and he also remembered that the girls in Qingshui No. 1 High School had never received a reply. What an irony. It was so fucking ironic. He was lucky that he changed his handwriting and pretended to be a girl. But he never thought that Lin Qinhe would never read these letters and would throw them away as rubbish. Tao Xi suddenly felt that he was the funniest joke in the world, stupid and cheap. He tightened his lips and stared at Lin Qinhe, with undisguised anger and malice in his eyes, but Lin Qinhe still looked at him with indifferent eyes, and asked in a cold voice: Why should I care? Why does it matter to you? Tao Xi was stunned. Yeah, what was wrong with him? If Lin Qinhe read the girls letter, then he was moved by their heart and promised to be with that person, he would not be happy at all. The anger came inexplicably and went inexplicably, Tao Xi didnt know why he was no longer angry, so he had no choice but to feel that he was still a sick idiot He bent down and took out the bunch of roses and envelope from Lin Qinhes drawer. He was about to go to the trash can and threw it away when Lin Qinhe suddenly said Take an opaque plastic bag and throw it away. Tao Xi asked subconsciously: Why? Lin Qinhes tone was already a little impatient, Do you want to see this if youre the one who wrote this? Tao Xi was stunned for another moment before realizing that if he threw it in the trash can, then it was very likely to be seen by other students who went to throw trash. If someone took it and read Okay, even if he threw away the letters, it was discarded with dignity. Tao Xi decided to forgive half of it graciously. He silently took out the opaque plastic bag that he had packed earlier in the morning from his drawer, put the flowers and envelope in it and fastened them before throwing them in the trash can. When he returned, Lin Qinhe was already sitting in his seat, doing the English papers given by Bi Aoxue. Hey, even Xueshen had to squeeze time out of the club activities to catch up with homework. Tao Xi continued to do the final set of English papers. He finally completed the final exam papers of Wenhua No.1 High School, but he did not have the answer. Then he thought about Lin Qinhes paper. Wasnt it the same as the answer? After hesitating for a while, he finally poke Lin Qinhes arm with a gel pen. What are you doing? Lin Qinhe didnt stop writing. Let me borrow your first year final paper. Tao Xi said. Threw it. Tao Xi was speechless and couldnt help but say, Shouldnt you keep the papers? You can revise the wrong questions when reviewing later. No need. Lin Qinhe finally put down the pen and looked at him sideways. Fuck, Tao Xi was stunned by the words. The crush meant that he had no wrong questions so there was no need to review it. Oh, forget it, I will ask another classmate to borrow it tomorrow. Tao Xi was just about to put away the paper, but Lin Qinhe suddenly reached out and took the paper to his table to look at it. Eh, eh! Give it back to me! Tao Xi shouted, but he didnt use his hand to grab the paper. Arent you going to check the paper? Lin Qinhe took out a red pen from his pencil case and start reading his English essay. Tao Xi suddenly became nervous. He withdrew his hand, as if sitting on pins and needles, watching Lin Qinhe draw a line on the English essay with a red pen. His eyes swaying from side to side. It was even more nervous than when a teacher in elementary school graded the paper in front of him! Your composition vocabulary is too weak. Lin Qinhe said. Oh. Tao Xi nodded obediently. In English, Lin Qinhe and his teacher were indistinguishable, or almost all subjects were indistinguishable. Lin Qinhe read the test paper again and quickly graded everything except the listening test that he didnt do. Tao Xi didnt know whether this person remembered the answer after more than two months, or he knew the answer as soon as he looked at the question. No matter what it was, it was quite abnormal. Can you get full marks in listening? Lin Qinhe asked. Tao Xi shook his head honestly: No, usually about two questions will be wrong. He was very weak in listening and speaking. Thank you for not having the oral exam for the college entrance examination, otherwise he would be finished. Go back and practice. Lin Qinhes tone was beyond doubt. Got it. Tao Xi nodded. For this set of papers, you can probably get 133 points. It is 5 points lower than the average score of the Class 1, and 1 point lower than the lowest score of Class 1. Lin Qinhe said. What he meant that he was still far from staying in Class 1. Tao Xi was inevitably a little depressed. He hung his head and gave a hum. Have you done the papers for other subjects? Lin Qinhe asked. Tao Xi hurriedly took out the other test papers. He put his head on Lin Qinhes desk, his embarrassment was gone. Lin Qinhe graded the papers one by one and each set was marked with a total score at the end. He then analyzed one by one the gap between him and the average and lowest score of the first class. To sum it up, there were still five words: You are still far behind. Tao Xi finally had no strength to be depressed. He put his chin on the desk, his eyelashes were drooping, only nodding numbly and saying, I know. Perhaps his expression was too pitiful. Lin Qinhe looked down at him for a while before he took the supplementary materials on his desk, opened the book and began to mark with strokes. He told him where he needed to focus on while drawing, Tao Xi nodded repeatedly. Finally, Lin Qinhe asked suddenly: Do you know where your biggest problem is? Tao Xi didnt have the energy to think. He turned his head and laid on the table in the direction of Lin Qinhe. He raised his eyelashes to look at him, his eyes were clear, only pure curiosity, and asked, Where? You cant find the point. Lin Qinhe paused, looking at him as he said that. It seemed to be true. Tao Xi thought about it. He always felt that he had to practice everything he read, and he didnt know which piece to dig deeper, so he behaved obediently: I will find out later. Lin Qinhe didnt seem to believe it so he asked, Then you tell me, what is the point of what I told you last time? Tao Xi was stunned. It took him two seconds to react. The last thing Lin Qinhe said to him was the things he said after the basketball game. After all, he had barely spoken since then. But the memory of that day was really not good, Tao Xi still felt heartache and when he thought of those words, he still felt wronged. He raised his head from the table, no longer looking at Lin Qinhe, his upper body was stiff, and he couldnt hide his full grievances as soon as he said: Dont you just want me not to use him in the future He lowered his eyelashes and pursed his lips, stubbornly not wanting to say the name. No. Lin Qinhe said flatly. Tao Xi was stunned, then he heard Lin Qinhe continued in a calm tone: My point is, if you have something to say, say it to me directly, I will listen. I will listen. Tao Xi was stunned for a while, suddenly felt a little hot in his eyes, sore in his chest, and his throat dried. He lowered his head, for fear that Lin Qinhe would see the expression on his face as he tried to reply in a calm voice, I see. So, what do you want to say to me this morning? Lin Qinhe asked, his voice even a little soft, as if he was afraid that if the tone was a little harder, the people on his side would not want to say it. Tao Xi took a deep breath. The piece of paper with the words carefully written one by one was torn apart by him and thrown into the trash can with his lack of courage. He seemed to have exhausted all his strength before putting the pieces together again, suppressing the growing sound of the mountain whistling and tsunami in his heart into a trembling voice and said: I want to continue to be your tablemate. Okay. Without hesitation, Lin Qinhe agreed softly. It was still the word okay, just like after physical education class that day. It was extremely low, but Tao Xi felt as if he had suddenly stepped on a soft cloud. Below the clouds was the Qingshui River in March. As soon as the wind blows, the peach blossoms in the col fall over the clear stream. Tao Xi squeezed his nails deeply into his palms, only to control himself so not to cry in front of Lin Qinhe. That would be embarrassing. He bit his tongue and couldnt help but continue: I still want you to help me to stay in the first class. That was how he liked to push his luck. But this time Lin Qinhe did not agree to him quickly. Tao Xi was a little flustered. He couldnt help looking sideways at Lin Qinhe. He was obviously careful, but he said, You dont want me to stay in the same class? This thorn was getting sharper and sharper, and he suddenly thought of Yang Duole. After working hard for a year before joining the class, he couldnt do without Lin Qinhes help, right? But what qualifications did he have to compare with Yang Duole? For Lin Qinhe, he was just a stranger who had known each other within a few days. Tao Xis chest was sour. He was afraid that Lin Qinhe would say yes to him, so he squeezed out a smile, pretending to be relaxed and pretending to say: I wont take too much of your time, just ask you some questions. In return, how about I help you improve your narrative writing? But Lin Qinhe didnt need help on his writing. He was like a child holding a pile of stones picked from the stream, trying to pick the best one from the stones, hoping to exchange for the treasure of others. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis red eyes, folded and smoothed the corners of a paper with his fingers and said in a flat tone: Whether you can stay in the first class or not depends mainly on your own efforts. I cant guarantee. Tao Xi sensed a glimmer of hope and said eagerly: I will seize all the time to work hard! You know, the last thing he lacked was hard work, because he could do nothing but work hard. Lin Qinhe turned his head and glanced at the blackboard at the end of the classroom, and with a low voice, he asked, Really? There were some doubt in his tone. Tao Xi was taken aback and glanced at the blackboard with cherry blossoms painted by him. He paused and said: I wont spend time drawing in the future. I helped Jiang Xinyun draw because she gave me a bottle of water after the basketball game. In order to highlight why he should help her, he seriously added: The bottle of water is 12 yuan a bottle. It is very expensive. After speaking, he realized that a bottle of water for 12 yuan was very expensive for him, but it was nothing to most of the students in the class, especially to Lin Qinhe C it was nothing at all. Lin Qinhe didnt show any emotion in his eyes after hearing what he said. He just said: You like to paint so you can join an Art Club. Dont waste time on other peoples affairs. Tao Xi was slightly startled, the club. He didnt realize why Lin Qinhe was so sure that he liked to paint, he just heard the word club in a daze. Because he suddenly thought of the scene when Lin Qinhe and Yang Duole playing in the orchestra just now and his heart ached at the thought. He still couldnt learn to control his jealousy and couldnt help but say: Isnt joining a club a waste of time? Lin Qinhe didnt get angry because of his stubbornness. He said, You can meet friends in the club. Its not a waste of time. Tao Xi was silent. He had no interest in meeting new friends. He wanted to know only Lin Qinhe in the whole world. But he would listen to what Lin Qinhe said. So he nodded as he said: Okay, Ill go and see. After Tao Xi finished speaking, he suddenly realized that Lin Qinhe had not promised to help him staying in the class. He was afraid that he would not be able to speak again if he let go of this opportunity today. Just as he was about to open his mouth, he heard Lin Qinhes phone vibrate. Lin Qinhe picked up the phone and looked at it. After answering it, he said, Im in the classroom, Lele should still be practicing. Tao Xi slowly closed the opened mouth, and heard Lin Qinhe continue to say: Okay, I will bring Lele home later. Lin Qinhe hung up the phone, stood up and said to Tao Xi, Im going back first. It took a long time for Tao Xi to lift the corner of his mouth and smile before he looked up at Lin Qinhe and said, Okay, see you tomorrow. He didnt know that his smile didnt look good at all. Lin Qinhe looked down at Tao Xis eyes and said after a while, I will stay in the classroom for lunch tomorrow. Tao Xi was stunned. Before he could react, he saw Lin Qinhe turned and walked out of the classroom. He continued to sit in the classroom where he was alone, staring at the paper on the table in a daze. Lin Qinhes red correction handwriting on the paper was still there. He stared at the handwriting firmly, as if he felt that everything just now was true. He suddenly covered his face and began to laugh, but after the laugh, he began to feel sad again, as if he was sick. Whenever he was complacent when he got a candy for himself, he would find that other already had candy that he could never eat. And those candies should be his. CH 11 Yang Duole was waiting at the school gate with his schoolbag on his back. The Lin family driver who came to pick him up with Lin Qinhe had been there for a while, but Lin Qinhe hadnt come out yet. After waiting for about two or three minutes, Yang Duole finally saw Lin Qinhe coming. Qinhe ge, what did you do when you went back to the classroom? The group leader went to find you to continue playing the piano. Yang Duole followed Lin Qinhe and walked towards the parking lot. Left something in the classroom. Lin Qinhe said. What is it so important? Yang Duole asked subconsciously. He glanced to see Lin Qinhes expression and knew that Lin Qinhe didnt want to answer him. After all, they grew up together and knew each other too well. Although he and Lin Qinhe had a good relationship, he could never ask what Lin Qinhe didnt want to say. The two drove back to Lins villa. A tall woman in a long black dress was waiting at the door. She had a black shoulder-length hair and a faint smile appeared on her face when they got out of the car. Mother Luo! Yang Duole rushed over and hugged Luo Zhengyin, his voice was sweet. Luo Zhengyin was Lin Qinhes mother, a well-known pianist in Wenhua City. She called out Le Le first, smiled and hugged Yang Duole, then looked at her son and asked, Qinhe, why school ended late today? Something was delayed. Lin Qinhe carried his and Yang Duoles schoolbags. He changed his shoes and walked into the house. Luo Zhengyin sighed slightly. Aside from being good at playing piano like her, her son was more like his father. He was indifferent to most people. Even when facing his relatives, he was never warm. She didnt ask anymore and said: Lets eat first, ba. The food on the table was very rich. Naturally, it was made by the nanny at home, Luo Zhengyin had always loved her hands. After the three of them were seated, Yang Duole talked with Luo Zhengyin about the school happily while eating. Luo Zhengyin responded with a smile while Lin Qinhe could hardly speak during the meal. In fact, in the Lin family, they really couldnt talk when eating. Lin Qinhes grandfather, Lin Weiliang, was the secretary of the Wenhua Municipal Party Committee. The old man had a rigid personality. The eldest son Lin Zeqiu was the current Secretary-General of the Provincial Party Committee. The younger son Lin Zeshi founded the Ruize Group, mainly engaged in real estate. Lin Zeshi was Luo Zhengyins husband, but Lin Zeshi generally worked out of town and rarely came home. Lele, you are now transferred to Class 1, are you sitting next to Qinhe? Luo Zhengyin asked. Yang Duole was in the same class as Lin Qinhe from kindergarten to middle school, but after Wenhua No. 1 High School sorted their students according to the results, the two were not in the same class. In the past year, Yang Duole studied hard, Lin Qinhe also tutored him a lot, and finally he became a classmate in the second year of high school. After the final grades came out, Yang Duole kept talking about being Lin Qinhes deskmate after school started. Yang Duole lowered his mouth, glanced at Lin Qinhe on the side and said to Luo Zhengyin with a bit of complaint and coquetry: Mother Luo, Qinhe ge has another deskmate. Luo Zhengyin was a little surprised. She knew that Lin Qinhe didnt have deskmate because he did not like being too close to people and having physical contact. Even if she was his mother, the two had never been as intimate as she and Yang Duole. Is it a former classmate? Luo Zhengyin couldnt think of anyone besides Yang Duole that could sit next to Lin Qinhe. Yang Duole continued: No, didnt you and Uncle Lin sponsor the remote live broadcast class in Qingshui County? Now the first in Qingshui County has come to our class and the homeroom teacher asked the new classmate to sit next to Qinhe ge. Luo Zhengyin was stunned. In addition to the linking with government for the remote live classrooms in Qingshui County, they did have funding from the Lin family, but she did not understand the specific funding details. Knowing that Yang Duole wanted to sit next to Lin Qinhe, she said, Arent you free to choose deskmate in your class? Next time you change seats. Lele, you and that new classmate will just change. Lin Qinhe, who had not spoken all the time, suddenly said, No need. Luo Zhengyin and Yang Duole were taken aback at the same time. Yang Duole was a little angry and muffled: Dont you think that Tao Xi hates me a little? I kind of dont want you to be friends with him. He could clearly feel Tao Xis hostility towards him. Although he didnt know why, he had neither disliked him, nor liked him. He even hated him a little bit more to balance his heart and he subconsciously had inexplicable guard against Tao Xi. Lin Qinhe was his best friend. If he became friends with Tao Xi, he would feel betrayed. Luo Zhengyin guessed that Tao Xi was Lin Qinhes deskmate, but it was not easy for her to talk about the contradiction between the children, so she didnt speak. Lin Qinhe put down his chopsticks and said in a cold voice: Lele, not everyone will follow what you want. The atmosphere of the dining room was stagnant for a moment. Luo Zhengyin seldom heard Lin Qinhe say such serious words to Yang Duole. She always loved Yang Duole as her child, and in the subtle way, Lin Qinhe loved Yang Duole as much as she did. She had to relax the atmosphere and said: Dont talk about it. Lele, I bought the new game you mentioned last time. It has been installed in the game console. Go play with Qinhe later. There was a special entertainment room at home, where they could watch movies and play games. Last year, she bought a whole set of VR game equipment for Yang Duoles birthday, although Yang Duole got bored after playing a few times. I dont really want to play, Mother Luo, Im going to take a nap. Yang Duole put down his chopsticks and left the dining room, obviously still sulking. But Luo Zhengyin wasnt too worried. The childs temper was quick to come and go C just say a few sentences to him. Lin Qinhe also stood up, but was stopped by Luo Zhengyin: Qinhe, lets talk with mom, ba. Luo Zhengyin seldom called herself mom in front of Lin Qinhe. If she said so, it usually meant a little pleading. Lin Qinhe looked down at his mother and did not refuse: Okay. The mother and son went to a studio on the second floor. This studio was very large but did not have any painting tools. There were just a lot of paintings hanging on the wall, most of which were obviously by the same person. Holding a cup of coffee, Luo Zhengyin walked to a painting. After looking at it for a while, she smiled: Today I heard Lele talked about Qingshui County and suddenly remembered this painting. I dont know if the real scene there will be as beautiful as in the painting. It was an oil painting. In the painting, a clear stream was winding in a mountain col. The peach blossoms along the stream were like clouds and brocades, and the peach blossoms on the stream drifted away. A black-tiled and white-walled farmhouse halfway up the mountain was filled with smoke. The painting was quiet and peaceful, with a small Sui written in the lower right corner of the painting. You can go and take a look. Lin Qinhe said indifferently. He also looked at the painting, but he seemed to look at something else through the painting. Luo Zhengyin sighed lightly, his expression was a little gloomy. She walked a few steps away to look at the other paintings and talked about the matter: Leles father has recently come back, so Lele is not in a very good mood. He is still a child and is far less mature than you. Dont get angry with him. Lin Qinhe was silent for a while before he asked, How many days has Uncle Yang been back? Luo Zhengyin frowned, as if he didnt want to mention this person. She said coldly: Its been two or three days, so I asked you to bring Lele back. The father and son will be quarrelling when they meet, and they will also make Uncle Fangs house uneasy. Yang Duole grew up in both Fang Zuqings house and Luo Zhengyins house. His father, Yang Zhengming, was engaged in the medical business. He was busy with his career during his early years and hardly cared about Yang Duole. In recent years, he suddenly wanted to have a good relationship with his son. He went to Yang Doules grandpa house every other time. Only Luo Zhengyin never dared to go there. You dont know, last time Yang Zhengming brought a new lover back. She looks like Well, she was seen by Lele anyway and he was annoyed for a long time. Luo Zhengyin rolled her eyes with disgust, bowed her head and took a sip of coffee. Lin Qinhe knew that his mother had not gotten over it. After Fang Sui died, Yang Zhengming was decadent and muddled for two years and only started his career after being scolded by Fang Zuqing. Although he had not been married for so many years, but in recent years there had been many lovers and each one had the shadow of Fang Sui. After all, it was a matter of the previous generation, Lin Qinhe couldnt say anything. Luo Zhengyin did not continue this topic. She walked to a childs painting, and after seeing it for a while, she smiled and said, You and Lele both learned to paint when you were young, but unfortunately you are always impatient. Lele wanted to learn but always cant paint well. In the end, he gave up. This is really not like his mother. At the end of the talk, Luo Zhengyins tone became a little darker and her eyes widened. Lin Qinhe looked at the painting that Yang Duole drew when he was eight years old. The picture showed a child holding the hands of his parents. The mother had long black hair and a paintbrush in her hand. All three of them had happy faces. He walked up to the painting with peach blossoms and flowing water, looked at the painting as he said, Not everyone has to have her shadow, not me, nor is Lele. Just like this villa, if he hadnt been allergic to pollen, the garden would have been full of white roses that the woman liked the most. Luo Zhengyin was stunned and did not speak for a long time. Tao Xi left the school in the afternoon. He entered a bookstore near the school and was going to buy English listening tapes because Lin Qinhe asked him to go back to practice English listening. Tao Xi had a cassette player that he bought in the first grade. The buttons were a bit hard to press, but it still barely worked. However, after searching in the bookstore for a while, he still did not find a listening book with a tape, until the owner of the bookstore asked him: Classmate, what baby are you looking for? I want to buy tapes for high school English listening practice. Tao Xi said. The bookstore owner was an uncle in his early forties, wearing a pair of plastic slippers. He looked surprised: Who still uses tape to listen to English? Tao Xi was taken aback, what would he use without tapes? The boss glanced at the school uniform that Tao Xi was wearing and said, Doesnt your Wenhua No. 1 High School have electronic devices? They all use mobile phones or tablets. They can listen to them at any time. The tapes are so inconvenient. He said while pulling out an English listening book from the bookshelf and pointed it to Tao Xi: When you buy the book, it will give you a download URL and QR code of the audio file. You can download it by scanning it with your mobile phone. Tao Xi remembered the wireless earphones Lin Qinhe often wore and said in a bewilderment: Okay, Ill look at other teaching materials first. He was about to turn around and walk when he was pulled again by the boss: Hey, wait. Ill go to the warehouse and maybe I might be able to look through the backlog of tapes before. The boss searched for a while and finally found the audiotapes and books that were not sold years ago. He patted the dust on them with his hands and said with a smile: Actually, I think the tapes are better. Students cant help but play games and chat when using their mobile phones. Who knows if they are listening to English or listening to music? Tao Xi nodded. Just as he was about to pay for it, the boss waved his hand and said, I gave it to you. It was meant to be thrown away. Tao Xi didnt want to take it for nothing. The two pushed a few times, and in the end, Tao Xi bought some other learning materials from the bookstore before accepting the free listening book and tape. He returned to the empty bedroom and took out the old-fashioned cassette player. At that time, he saved a lot of breakfast money to buy the player. After buying it, he carefully affixed a sticker and wrote his name on it, for fear of being taken away. This was his only electronic device besides the electronic watch. After pressing the power button several times, the cassette player started to work slowly. He put the newly bought tape in, plugged in a broken earphone, and heaved a sigh of relief when the sound came out. After an hour of doing English listening, Tao Xi worked on the more difficult topics in the newly bought supplementary books according to the key points of each subject that Lin Qinhe had planned in the morning. If he didnt understand, he circled the question number, then fold up the pages of the book, and wait for tomorrows lunch break to ask Lin Qinhe. Thinking of Lin Qinhes helping him at noon the next day, Tao Xi couldnt help but lie on the table and laugh in a low voice. There was no one in the bedroom, but he seemed afraid of being heard. Just like when he was a child, Guo Ping would occasionally bring a lollipop to Tao Le when he came back from town. He would sometimes get a lollipop, but he would never eat it like Tao Le did. He always kept it in his bag for a long time. From time to time, for fear of being seen by Tao Le , he quietly took out to take a look and smell it and waited until the candy paper was sticky and couldnt be torn off before eating it. Except for going out at night to buy a shou zhao bing1 and ate it, Tao Xi only studied in the dormitory throughout the afternoon and evening, and before going to bed at night, he wore one earphone and listen to nine pounds and fifteen pence2. He thought he would have no dreams after studying for a whole day, but he had a dream that night. He dreamed that he was sitting in the classroom during the day and watching Lin Qinhe who was next to him helping him marking the paper. Suddenly Lin Qinhes cell phone vibrated. After he answered the phone for a while, he said, Okay, I will take Tao Xi home later. Then they took the bus home together but it took a long time to arrive. Tao Xi was wondering why they hadnt arrived yet. The bus finally stopped. He and Lin Qinhe got out of the bus and took a look. It turned out that it was not Lin Qinhes home but Qingshui river in Taoxi Bay. There were peach blossoms on the mountain col and on the stream, and there were orioles on the branches. He invited Lin Qinhe to sit at his home halfway up the mountain, but Lin Qinhe frowned and said, I dont like it here. Then he turned and left. He chased after him vigorously, shouting how about I cut the peach blossom tree, but he couldnt catch up like a ghost hitting a wall. After waking up, Tao Xi felt like he had run two hundred miles, and drank several sips of water. _____________________________ The author has something to say: No hurry, it will be sweet Taiwanese chicken BLT wrap This is the part of the test before the English listening of the college entrance examination. Someone will recite an English question and then explains it in Chinese. The question remains unchanged for thousands of years. It is a question about the price of shirts. Many school mock exams will also play this recording in order to appear real (cr: google) CH 12 Xi ge, I want to say sorry to you, and you have to forgive me. Tao Xi walked out of the cafeteria to the teaching building in the morning, and was robbed halfway by Bi Chengfei. He staggered when he was taken and almost vomited out for breakfast before said with a low voice, Whats the matter? Bi Chengfei didnt have any guilt on his face, instead he looked a little happy: I decided with difficulty that I will sacrifice myself to feed the tigress and continue to be Hu Tongs deskmate. So, Im sorry, brother1. He looked at Tao Xis face carefully, for fear that this fragile little cabbage would be sad because of his promise. Tao Xi was not at all sad, and instead curiously asked, Hu Tong forgive you? After Hu Tong accidentally threw Jin Jings water bottle last time, Bi Chengfei gave her a long face and Hu Tong didnt talk to Bi Chengfei for a few days. Why did she forgive me? Me being a grown up forgave her for being the villain, okay? Bi Chengfei explained that he posted a photo of playing basketball in Moments yesterday. Hu Tong clicked a like and canceled it so he da da ran to apologize. Oh. Seeing Tao Xis disapproval, Bi Chengfei said with concern: Xi ge, you are so good-looking. There must be many girls who would like to sit with you. You can find it now. After all, beautiful girls like Jiang Xinyun took the initiative to find Tao Xi, although Tao Xi refused her for him. Thinking about that, Bi Chengfei finally felt guilty and began to wonder which classmate to lead Tao Xi to. But then, he heard Tao Xi say: I have deskmate, so I dont need to look for it. Bi Chengfei was taken aback and saw a smile on Tao Xis fair face, like a flowering cabbage. ??? When did you look for it? Jiang Xinyun? Did you guys go back to private association2 yesterday? Bi Chengfei smelled the gossip. The two of them just walked to the lobby on the first floor of the teaching building. Tao Xi squinted his eyes and stretched out a finger, pointing to the glory list on the glass curtain wall: Hey, the one who is the most distressed is my tablemate. The arrogant posture was no different from Aunt Zhou. When he walked to the classroom, Bi Chengfei still felt incredible. Since earlier, only two people in their class did not have deskmate. One was Huang Qing, the one who ranked second. No one wanted to sit with her because of her eccentric personality. The other was Lin Qinhe, the top 1. There were many people who wanted to sit with him, but apart from Yang Duole, no one dared to speak. Xi ge was indeed Xi ge, so awesome. They changed seats during the self-study hours on Monday morning. There were not many changes in the class as everyone sat at their original seat. Tao Xi was in a good mood. He wiped his desk carefully before sitting down on his seat, and neatly aligned edge of the table again. After watching the table for a while, he sat down with satisfaction and began to study early. Lin Qinhe hadnt come yet, so he guessed he would come before the class bell yet again. When Tao Xi was walking to the drinking water room to fetch water, he met a short-haired girl named Chen Yachun. She told him: The head teacher was looking for you just now. He asked you to go to the first floor of Qiushi Building to find him. Tao Xi was a little puzzled. If Zhou Qiang was looking for him, he would find him himself and why at the Qiushi Building that was so far? But he didnt doubt it. After saying thank you, he turned and left the classroom without seeing Chen Yachuns smile behind him. Tao Xi ran to the Qiushi Building, panting. There were no people in the Qiushi Building when there was no club meeting. He scanned the lobby on the first floor and didnt even see a mosquito. A passing cleaner asked: Classmate, what are you doing here? Class is about to start. Tao Xi had an idea in his heart. He didnt explain to the cleaner, but turned around and ran towards the teaching building. He ran fast, getting faster and faster, but he still couldnt get there before the class bell rang. At the second when the bell rang, he was panting and was about to rush to the door of the classroom when he saw Bi Aoxue who was already standing on the podium with high heels. Yes, there is someone to succeed the champion for being late in our English class. Bi Aoxue said to Tao Xi with a light smile, wearing a new dress, not looking angry. Sorry teacher, I was wrong, and I wont do it anymore. Tao Xi knew that no explanation would be useful. The attitude was very upright. Come in, its still the old rules. You cant avoid it just because you are new. Bi Aoxue took out a collection of English essays, turned a page casually, and pointed it to Tao Xi who had came to the podium, Read this paragraph aloud. Go, ba. Before Tao Xi took the book, he glanced at the last row. Lin Qinhe was already sitting at his seat with his eyes down, not knowing what competition book he was reading. He breathed a sigh of relief and looked at the camera at the end of the classroom again. He knew that the students from Qingshui No. 1 High School thousands of miles away could also see him standing on the podium and hear his voice. Tao Xi lowered his gaze and read the passage roughly. Bi Aoxue was obviously kinder to him. The passage she picked was very simple, without unfamiliar vocabulary, unlike what she had made Lin Qinhe to read before. He took a deep breath and began to try his best to imitate Lin Qinhes intonation to read English, which he had been practicing when he was in Qingshui No. 1 Middle School. But after all, he was not Lin Qinhe. When he thought of a few words, he heard several girls laughing below. Although the laughter was very low, he could hear the meaning of ridicule. Bi Aoxue frowned and looked at the smiling girls coldly. Jiang Xinyun and Chen Yachun waited for three or four girls to stop laughing before closing their smiles. After Tao Xi finished reading, he returned the book to Bi Aoxue, and Bi Aoxue nodded and let him go down. He walked back to his seat quickly and took out the English textbook from the drawer. Bi Chengfei wanted to turn his head and turned halfway, but Bi Aoxue glared back. Tao Xi was actually quite calm. He had always been very aware of the gap between himself and Wenhua No. 1 High School students. This gap was not only in grades, but also in vision, insight, sentiment, and various qualities Achievements could be made up by any means, but the many things that were determined by birth, he wouldnt be able to make up at all for a while. He suddenly remembered that before coming to Wenhua No. 1 High School, the Chinese teacher told him when he saw him off, that he should neither be humble nor arrogant. He did not feel inferior, but he still couldnt help being disappointed in himself. He thought, when he saw Lin Qinhe on the screen, he saw the light. So when other students in Qingshui No. 1 High School see him on the podium, wouldnt they also see the light? After all, he was the best student in Qingshui County. He was a little disappointed that he could not become this light. Tao Xi suppressed these thoughts and finished the class seriously. As soon as the bell rang, Bi Chengfei, who was in front of him, quickly turned around and asked: Xi ge, whats the matter, why are you late? Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe on the side looking at his mobile phone from the corner of his eyes. He explained in a perfunctory manner: I went to the canteen to buy refills, halfway through the run, I remembered that I the class was about to start so I rushed back. Bi Chengfei was successfully fooled: Hey, let me lend it. Will I not lend it to you? Then he took a handful of refills from the refill box and placed them in front of Tao Xi. Tao Xi only took one, smiled and said thank you. Lin Qinhe didnt say anything from the beginning to the end. Tao Xi breathed a sigh of relief, although he knew Lin Qinhe wouldnt ask. He knew what this little prank meant, but he didnt feel too relieved. Jiang Xinyuns sense of superiority would not allow Tao Xi, a boy from the countryside, to refuse her own initiative. Although Tao Xi was angry, he would not cause trouble for the girl. This was nothing compared to the methods he had seen in his school before. Tao Xi quickly finished his meal in the cafeteria at noon, and was thankful that Bi Chengfei, a troublesome person, never returned to the classroom during the lunch break. When rushing back to the classroom, there was only the second place Huang Qing who would not move in the classroom, reading. He panted slightly and returned to his seat, took out the set of listening books and tape he had just bought, and started to do English listening. He wanted Lin Qinhe to see, that as long as Lin Qinhe said it, he would do it seriously. About ten minutes later, Lin Qinhe returned to the classroom when he had just finished a set of listening questions. As soon as Tao Xi heard the movement, he turned his head and looked at Lin Qinhe, his body was straight, and his eyes were full of I obediently listen to you. Lin Qinhe glanced at him and walked over to pull the chair and sit down. Tao Xi suddenly became a little uncomfortable. He didnt know how to put his hands or where to put his eyes, so he pushed the listening book on his desk to the side. He told him using the tone of reporting to a teacher: I did four sets of English listening and I made two mistakes in total. He nervously thought that it should be okay, and inexplicably looking forward to it. What did he expect? Maybe a compliment? But Lin Qinhe only glanced at the listening book and said: These questions are too old to be useful to you. Tao Xi was taken aback. This was already the only audiobook with tapes he could find. He dragged the book back in a little flustered manner, like dragging a bag of disgusted garbage, and said: Then, then I will go buy new books and tapes. He closed the book and found that Lin Qinhe was looking at his cassette player with his name on it. He stuffed the player into the drawer, lowered his head and added: I am more used to listening to English on tapes. It was not just listening on tape. After that, he felt unnecessary. There was no point in maintaining this self-esteem in front of Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi thought about going to the larger bookstore in the city to find new listening materials during the weekend. Lin Qinhe didnt talk about the listening book anymore. He took out a few printed papers from the drawer and put them on Tao Xis desk, saying, Ive finished these questions at noon today. Watch the time by yourself. After speaking, he put on his earphones and took out his book to read, as if he would no longer look at things next to him. Tao Xi stared blankly at the papers in front of him. These printed A4 papers were neatly bound, with questions printed on them. Each set of multiple-choice questions and each major question was accompanied by the time required to complete the question in a few minutes. He had never seen the world. He knew that these topics were not just torn from a supplementary material, but Lin Qinhe selected them one by one, typed them, and then printed them out and bound them. Why havent you started doing it? Lin Qinhe said indifferently. Tao Xi returned to his senses and nodded, Ill start right away. He untied the old electronic watch from his wrist and put it aside, and then unscrewed the gel pen cap. Obviously it was easy but it seems to have used a lot of effort Tao Xi put his strength very lightly when he wrote, as if he was afraid of piercing through the paper and was careful not to make mistakes. The paper was clean until he finished writing and there was no alteration. He also strictly followed the time given by Lin Qinhe. Once the time passed, he would stop answering the question. After finishing everything, he took a deep breath as he pushed the whole stack of paper onto Lin Qinhes desk, and whispered, Im finished. Nervous like handing in homework to the teacher. Lin Qinhe put down the book, took out a red pen and started to make marking the paper. This time had become particularly difficult. Tao Xi didnt know what to do beside him. He didnt dare to look at the question being graded, let alone look at Lin Qinhe directly. However, he felt that it was not good to do other things while Lin Qinhe grading the question for him, so he had no choice but to look around, just to see that there were not many people in the classroom. There was a boy who buried his head on the table with his shoulders shrugged. He was probably watching some funny novel or movie. A girl was applying lipstick while looking in the mirror, and she started to squeeze the blackheads on her nose. The second place named Huang Qing who currently didnt have deskmate hadnt changed her posture for so long. She still sat upright, like an iron plate. It seemed that not all the top-notch people were as relaxed as Lin Qinhe. There were also such hardworking and diligent people. Tao Xi stared at Huang Qings ponytail in a daze, and suddenly listened to Lin Qinhe on the side saying, Calculate this problem again. The voice was low and the tone was a bit ugly. Tao Xi regained his senses and saw Lin Qinhe put the test paper in front of him and clicked on a math problem with the tip of a red pen. He shrank his head and said Okay, then lowered his head and started to recalculate, only to find that he had made a careless calculation before. No wonder Lin Qinhe would be angry. This kind of low-level mistake was too unacceptable. After the calculation, he handed it to Lin Qinhe to grade. As soon as he started looking around, Lin Qinhe said solemnly: Read the book when you are bored. Tao Xi retracted his gaze and nodded in agreement. Since it was Lin Qinhe who said it, he was fine with it. He took out a textbook and began to read until Lin Qinhe finished marking the paper for him. Then, he started to talk about the wrong question. Lin Qinhes explanation was very concise, and he could always point out Tao Xis problems directly. After Tao Xi finished this set of questions, he felt like he was enlightened, and many things covered by the fog had become clear. Even the many questions that he did not understand yesterday, he didnt need to ask anymore After all, he was a very smart person. After finishing all the lectures, Tao Xi was still reluctant to give up. After all, Lin Qinhe only talked at noon today. He didnt say that it would be like this every day in the future. He smoothed out the set of test questions, and after struggling for a while, he tentatively said to Lin Qinhe: How about you give me a narrative title, and I will show it to you after I write it? He didnt know whether Lin Qinhe wanted to be his friend or not, but friends should be in contact with each other. Even if Lin Qinhe didnt need it, he still had to express his heart. Sure enough, Lin Qinhe put on the red pens cap and said concisely: No. Tao Xi was not surprised so he replied: Then you can ask me to write anything in the future. I will write. He thought he had written a lot of things to Lin Qinhe. But what did Lin Qinhe need him to write? Self-review? He was good at it, but who would dare to let Lin Qinhe write a self-review? Love letter? If Lin Qinhe asked him to help write love letters to other girls he didnt really want to think about this possibility. Tao Xi had a lot in his mind but he couldnt think of a reason, so he didnt expect Lin Qinhe to respond. He listened to Lin Qinhe firmly said: Okay, thats what you said. BCF used ֵ (xiong di) here The term private association refers to the improper private contact between idols and fans, such as falling in love, asking for large amounts of property, obtaining votes through improper means, etc. (cr: douban) CH 13 The good mood of the lunch break did not last long, because the weekly test results came out in the afternoon. After Tao Xi got the paper, he counted the total score. He didnt know what rank he got, but he knew he was 20 points less than Bi Chengfei. Bi Chengfei had always been slacking in class so the result must be not that good. This made Tao Xi very shocked. He hid the paper and did not dare to let Lin Qinhe see it, even though Lin Qinhe was definitely not interested in reading his paper. After returning to the dormitory at night, he was forced to watch a performance by Xu Ziqi, a master of yin and yang. The results did come out no ranking. It must be the first in Class 2 After asking around, it is 5 points higher than the bottom of the Class 1 There should be no problem in the midterm I have said that the end of the last term was just a mistake. Thats it, what are you anxious about @ Bi Chengfei did you put your results on the bulletin board? Pan Yan was painting, and the little fat man rolled his eyes and said to Tao Xi: Tao Xi, can you help me see if the paint in my painting is too thick? Why does it feel thicker than some humans? Tao Xi felt that if he lived in this dormitory, he would not be far from becoming a yin and yang person. At noon the next day Tao Xi still finished lunch at the fastest speed and rushed to the classroom. There was still only one Huang Qing who was silent like a ghost in the classroom. Sitting in his seat, he religiously took out the topic that Lin Qinhe had set for him yesterday from the new paper bag he bought while gritting teeth. Every piece of paper was smooth and unmarked. He carefully read the questions he got the wrong answer again. Even if he had a bad memory, he would not forget it. Five minutes, ten minutes, twenty minutes, thirty minutes Tao Xi had already taken out his own papers and started to study. When the back door made a sound, he would turn his head to look at the door, but the one who opened the door was never the one he wanted to see. It wasnt until two minutes before class in the afternoon that Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe coming in through the front door. The light in his eyes lit up instantly, but in a blink of an eye he saw Yang Duole coming in behind Lin Qinhe, holding a half-drunk milk tea in one hand, and a supplementary book in the other. Tao Xi quickly lowered his head and continued to work on the topic in front of him with a pen. He knew he was daydreaming, actually hoping that Lin Qinhe would return to the classroom early during the lunch break as he did yesterday to help him with his homework. Sometimes, like now, the malice deep in his heart would suddenly grow wildly, yelling in his heart: Expose it all! Take back everything that belongs to you! This should be yours! But he knew that he might be able to regain his superior family status, regain the attention of his relatives, and regain his origin. But he could not take back Lin Qinhe. He couldnt take back the feelings that Lin Qinhe and Yang Duole grew up with. After all, he even had to steal Yang Duole from his dream, but stealing was stealing. Only after stealing it, he realized that it was very bitter. He didnt need a good background. He only wanted a Lin Qinhe from the start. Yes, Tao Xi wanted Lin Qinhe. He still didnt know what the method was, but this voice was getting louder and louder in his heart, roaring through the mountains and seas that even if he closed your mouth and didnt say anything, it would still definitely come out of his eyes. So when Lin Qinhe pulled a chair beside him as usual and sat down, he didnt dare to pretend to look aside inadvertently as usual and instead he looked at the person next to him from the corner of his eyes. He just kept his head buried in writing papers. After that day, Tao Xi would still return to the classroom quickly at noon, but he would no longer hope that the person beside him would come back early. The truth was that there was no such thing. During the free activities in the physical education class, Bi Chengfei wanted to take him to play basketball again, but Tao Xi refused, holding the materials to find a place to study. Many of the benches in the rest area were occupied by girls. He walked to the schools only milk tea shop. Unlike the two or three square meters cottage milk tea shop in Qingshui County where the sanitary quality was worrying, this milk tea shop was very large, with two floors and the decoration style was very girly. Tao Xi thought of the milk tea and supplementary materials that Yang Duole held that day. Perhaps he was in this milk tea shop, doing his homework and getting tutored by Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe would definitely dislike this style of place. Tao Xi walked into the milk tea shop unconsciously. The walls inside were light pink and light blue. Like a coffee shop, there were many semi-enclosed decks, and most of them were girls eating desserts and chatting. The store manager was a woman in her early forties, with a kind-looking face. She smiled at him when she saw the newcomer. Tao Xi regretted coming in when he glanced at the menu on the cashier counter. The price behind the long list of milk tea names was a few dozen. Tao Xi smiled awkwardly at the store manager, turned around and was about to leave, but when he turned around a semi-enclosed deck, he heard some familiar sounds. Didnt you still have a good impression of Tao Xi before? But, hes not interested in you at all in the end. A girl chuckled. Tao Xi thought about it. She was Zhang Mengtong, a representative of the Chinese class who often with Jiang Xinyun and had praised his writing. Who has a crush on him? It was Jiang Xinyuns voice, eager to deny it. Didnt you pass a note to ask him be your tablemate? Now you dont admit that you like him. Zhang Mengtong said. I didnt! Ihow could I like someone from the countryside? A girl laughed, it seemed that it was Chen Yachun: I couldnt figure it out at the time. Xinyun always had a high vision. How could she be interested in rural men? You must know that no matter how good he is but if he comes from the countryside, the rural thinking cannot be changed. Yes, no matter how good he looks, he will be a typical white collar guy from a working-class background in the future. Xinyun, if you marry him, he will definitely cheat on you after the Jiang family develops. Zhang Mengtong pretended to be enlightened. You guys are talking farther and farther away! Jiang Xinyun was a little annoyed. But Tao Xi is quite weird. It stands to reason that if there are girls in our school who like him, those with a bit of vision and ambition should seize this opportunity. Maybe they will climb the ladder. Chen Yachun said. What if he likes Jin Jings noble and glamorous type? Zhang Mengtong smiled. Dont provoke my relationship with Jin jing! Jin Jing only likes Lin Qinhe. Jiang Xinyun scolded. So what, Lin Qinhe cant look down on her. Chen Yachun chuckled lightly, with a contemptuous tone. Okay, I know who you like. Zhang Mengtong smiled at Chen Yachun. Tao Xi was standing behind a hollow wall with pink wallpaper in the deck, so he could hear clearly. He half-dropped his eyelashes and sneered silently, not intending to break the discussion of the girls. When he was in Qingshui, he would fight with men no matter what until others were convinced, and he never mixed up with girls. What could he do? He couldnt beat them, so rushed over and scolded them? It could only be self-humiliating. Tao Xi was about to leave when she heard a girls voice suddenly said: Your family education teach you to talk about people behind their back? Oh, the dumb forever top 2 wants to get justice for others. Why, this is your store, so we cant talk anymore? Chen Yachuns voice was sour. We can do a lot of business for your mother, are you rushing for customers? Zhang Mengtong smiled and took a sip of milk tea. Huang Qing looked at the three girls coldly. Not far away, her mother was giving her a wink. She was speechless, turned and walked outside the milk tea shop, but when she turned, she ran into Tao Xi. She was startled, and wanted to open her mouth subconsciously when she saw Tao Xi stretch out his index finger and made a hush motion. The two walked silently outside the milk tea shop. Tao Xi looked at the pale girl with a neat ponytail and smiled before saying, Thank you just now, but dont do this in the future, lest they isolate you for this. He knew how it feels to be isolated, and it didnt feel good at all. Huang Qing said blankly: Whats the matter, havent I been isolated long ago? Tao Xi thought for a moment and remembered that Huang Qing was indeed all alone. When she was about to say goodbye, she heard Huang Qing say: Tao Xi, dont listen to them. I think you are very good. Tao Xi was taken aback. To tell the truth, he had spoken to many classmates for so long since school started, but he was completely unfamiliar with this person. He smiled slightly, sincerely, Thank you. Because of the little kindness he received, he was very grateful. After Tao Xi was about to leave, fearing embarrassment of bumping into those girls, he saw Lin Qinhe and Yang Duole walking here, perhaps to accompany Yang Duole to buy milk tea. He paused, after thinking about it, he curled his eyes and smiled at Lin Qinhe. But Lin Qinhe didnt even look at him, and walked into the milk tea shop with Yang Duole. Instead, Yang Duole smiled at him and called him. Tao Xi was startled slightly. He felt that Lin Qinhe seemed colder than when he first saw him on the first day of school. Then he suddenly realized that since Lin Qinhe said I will listen to him that day on the club activities day, he seemed to have no initial indifference. Although there was still no expression and he didnt take the initiative to speak to him, but it seemed that he no longer refused him thousands of miles away, making him afraid to approach. But Lin Qinhe just now made him feel disgusted. Yes, it was disgust. He finally remembered that when Zhou Qiang asked him to sit next to Lin Qinhe on the first day of school, Lin Qinhe looked at him when he refused directly. He was dazzled by being able to sit next to Lin Qinhe, and he didnt even understand the meaning of the look in his eyes. That look was clearly the same as the disgust in Lin Qinhes eyes when he told Lin Qinhe that there were roses in the drawer. Tao Xi took a deep breath. Maybe the air-conditioning in the milk tea shop just now was too high. He suddenly felt a bit cold in his hands, and left the milk tea shop after bidding farewell to Huang Qing. Yang Duole walked into the milk tea shop and looked at Lin Qinhe beside him. He said in surprise: Qinhe ge, didnt you never enter here before? Why did you come in today? Ninety percent of the customers of this milk tea shop were girls. If Yang Duole didnt have sweet tooth and like drinking milk tea, he himself wouldnt be willing to enter such a girly milk tea shop, and Lin Qinhe would stay away, never stepping into this door even for half a step. He wanted Lin Qinhe to help himself with his homework here and Lin Qinhe would rather stand on the playground than come in. As expected, Lin Qinhe looked a little uncomfortable. The sweet to greasy smell in the store made him frown, standing not far from the door and didnt walk inside. He didnt answer Yang Duoles question but urged in a deep voice, Go and buy it and leave. Some girls who were drinking milk tea and chatting quietly looked at Lin Qinhe as if they had discovered a new world, lowered their heads and bit their ears to discuss in a low voice. Yang Duole noticed that Lin Qinhes mood suddenly became bad. Although Lin Qinhe always had a cold face and no expression, he knew how Lin Qinhes mood was as a friend of more than 16 years. He was fascinated and said nothing, and quickly walked to the counter. Lin Qinhe stood in place and raised his wrist to look at his watch, and then looked out the glass door. The two people who were standing at the door and chatting had long been gone. He was about to turn around and walk outside the door when Jiang Xinyun, Zhang Mengtong and Chen Yachun came out. The three girls were a little surprised seeing Lin Qinhes expression. Zhang Mengtong quietly poked Chen Yachun next to him. Chen Yachun paused, looked up at Lin Qinhe, and showed him a smile. When she smiled, she would reveal two dimples. It was the expression she thought was the best. Chen Yachun never expected Lin Qinhe to respond to her, but Lin Qinhe looked at her. However, before she could be happy, her heart sank quickly. Lin Qinhe only glanced at her, then turned and walked out of the store. But besides the same indifference as before, that gaze also had distinct disgust. It was clear that even if she didnt know how she had offended Lin Qinhe, she obviously felt that this person was disgusted by her. Tao Xi was holding a book alone found an empty bench and sat down to study by himself. After reading the book for a long time and couldnt understand it, Lin Qinhes eyes always appeared in his mind. Lin Qinhes eyes were very beautiful, and his pupils were amber in the sun. When looking at a person for a long time, because of his higher height, the long and dense eyelashes were always half drooping. Occasionally, it trembled slightly, cutting off some cold and alienated eyes like a swallowtail, giving people the illusion that they were being watched seriously. Tao Xi was stared at by these eyes. On the day of the club activity day, when he begged Lin Qinhe in every way to help him stay in the class, perhaps it was because of this illusion that made him extra courageous that day. Tao Xi didnt know why Lin Qinhe seemed to hate him again, but he was not discouraged by it. He told himself that the future was long and he still had a year to work hard. But Tao Xi didnt know how he had to work hard to get closer to Lin Qinhe. He could only try to keep himself in Class 1, as was what Lin Qinhe told him. Wanting to be his friend, then just entered the top fifty in the mid-term entrance examination. Tao Xi was suddenly full of enthusiasm again, and spent more time in the quilt with a flashlight at night, and his face was sweaty when he got out of the quilt after studying. Although he covered it very tightly, Xu Ziqi always weirdly said that light disturbed his sleep. He was afraid that Xu Ziqi would go to the dormitory to report it, so he had to wrap the flashlight with a dark plastic bag, which showed only a very weak light. But the consequence of this is that his eyes felt a little swollen every time he finished studying. CH 14 After English class on Sunday morning, Tao Xi gently poked the arm of Lin Qinhe who was playing with his pen. Lin Qinhe continued to touch the screen in his hand, without turning his head, his voice was cold: Whats the matter? Im going to fetch water, do I need to bring it for you? Tao Xi eagerly looked at the black water bottle with only half of water left on Lin Qinhes table. No need to. Tao Xi said Oh. Instead of fetching water, he took out a crumpled poster of the art club. He blinked his eyes, whispering as if he had obtained the college entrance examination results and then discussing with his parents which university to apply for: I plan to go to the art club today. Because Lin Qinhe told him last week that he could join the art club so he wanted Lin Qinhe to know that he listened to him. But Lin Qinhes voice was still cold: Its not my business? Tao Xi said Oh again, put away the poster and consciously shut up. Since meeting Lin Qinhe at the entrance of the milk tea shop that day, he had tried so hard to speak with Lin Qinhe actively. Every morning he would diligently ask Lin Qinhe if he needed to help fetch water. But Lin Qinhe was always so indifferent to answering questions as he did right now, he hadnt even touched Lin Qinhes water bottle yet. Was it possible that Lin Qinhe was afraid that he would poison his water? Tao Xi self-examined for a long time, but he never figured out what he did that day, or why did Lin Qinhe be like this. However, the moon could be cloudy and sunny and so, Lin Qinhes intermittent cloudy and sunny, lack of personality were also normal. Tao Xi told himself like this. After the last class, the students in the class took their school bag and rushed out. Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe and Yang Duole go out with music scores. After hesitating in the classroom, he ran to Qiushi Building. Holding the poster, he followed the address for a while and finally found the large studio of the art club on the second floor. There were about 30 people in it, mostly girls, who were already drawing on the drawing board. Obviously, painting was a rare specialty of him. Tao Xi still felt nervous when he entered, he always felt as if he had broken into someone elses territory. He was looking for the person in charge of the club, but he ran into two acquaintances on a narrow road1. Tao Xi, are you coming to the art club too? Are you looking for Xinyun? Zhang Mengtong held a paintbrush and smiled while speaking and gave Jiang Xinyun a look. Jiang Xinyun was wearing her pink apron, looked up at Tao Xi, then glared at Zhang Mengtong, but the corner of her mouth was smiling. Tao Xi couldnt help but admire these two people a little. He felt that he could be regarded as a a good performer and he didnt expect there were someone better than him2. If he hadnt heard their conversation in the milk tea shop, he would definitely feel that they were very friendly to him now. He smiled lightly and said, I heard Lin Qinhe say that this place is good, so I come to have a look, but now I dont have much interest. After speaking, he turned and left without seeing the very ugly faces of the two people behind him. Tao Xi was not going to join the art club, and found a good reason for himself. He didnt want to spend money on painting tools. Just a few steps out of the door, he was stopped by a tall girl: Dont go, Tao xue di3. There will be a lack of talent in our club if you leave. Tao Xi was taken aback. The girl whom he didnt know, was tall, only a little shorter than him. She tied a long curly hair with a purple ribbon, her bright eyes were full of smiles. She continued: Im Qiao Yitang, the president of the Art Club, and Im in the third grade. I heard from the little fat man Pan Yan about you, so Im just waiting for you to come to our club. Tao Xi was a little puzzled. He had never told Pan Yan that he wanted to join the art club. He nodded and said, Xue jie4, but I dont really want to join the club anymore. Why? Qiao Yitang was very puzzled and anxious, Dont you like painting? Tao Xi found this person more and more weird, so he said frankly: I dont have tools for painting. Whats wrong with this? Wont the president gave you a set of tools? Qiao Yitang breathed a sigh of relief when she heard the words, and without particular attention, led Tao Xi into the studio. The students who were painting inside respectfully shouted hello to the president. They looked at Tao Xi in amazement. Only Jiang Xinyun and Zhang Mengtong had complex expressions. With enthusiasm, Qiao Yitang gave Tao Xi a new drawing board and a set of brand-new brushes and paints. She said that it was publicly owned by the club and did not leave him any room for rejection. Tao Xi was pressed to the drawing board like a chicken and began to draw. Qiao Yitang finally let him go before instructing a boy to take good care of Tao xue di. She then took her cell phone out of the studio, as if she was going to call someone. The boy introduced himself as Gao Yang, a student in the second-year art class. He spoke to Tao Xi with a little envy: How do you know our president? She is too enthusiastic about you too. Tao Xi thought, I didnt know, so he replied: Maybe my roommate Pan Yan told her about me. Gao Yang whispered: Pan Yan? How can he reach the principals daughter, ba. He thought that Tao Xi was not interested in this topic and deliberately lied to him, so he turned around to paint himself, ignoring Tao Xi. The studio was quiet, Tao Xi also had begun to paint. Qiao Yitang gave him very good brushes and paints. This was the first time he could paint in such a formal way without borrowing other peoples tools. When he was seriously painting, he would be fully engaged. He didnt notice that more and more people were standing behind him. Even President Qiao Yitang had come around. The painting was a moon of a snowy night. An icy moon full with silvery white light on the snow-capped mountains. Obviously the lines were very simple but with the perfect colour, the snow and moonlight portrayed an unattainable lonely beauty. Tao Xi realized that he was being watched again when he closed his pen. He saw Qiao Yitang looking at him with scorching eyes, like looking at some treasured species. Xue di, if you tell me you havent learned painting, I wont let you go today. Qiao Yitang threatened, but her tone was excited. The other onlookers suddenly looked at Tao Xi nervously. If the newcomer in front of them really hadnt learned painting before, then what did they pay for the painting lesson for so many years for? Tao Xi nodded calmly and said, Its just for fun when Im bored. Fuck! Drawing for fun. A few people couldnt help but curse in low voice. They looked at Tao Xi with sour and solemn eyes. They thought Tao Xi was some kind of relative of the president. Tao Xi couldnt help but smiled, pretending to be really happy. When Lin Qinhe said its not necessary to do correction on the wrong question, he was this happy too. Qiao Yitang was not surprised. Painting was the same as music. Perhaps a hundred percent of diligence was not as good as the talent of others. She carefully looked at the painting and couldnt help sighing: Tao Xi, your style of painting is like a painting I have seen before. Tao Xi was startled slightly and hurriedly asked, Whose is it? He wondered if it was his mother, Fang Sui? Qiao Yitang said, Its a friend of a friend of mine. It doesnt seem to be his friend. She shook her head, as if she didnt want to say anything. Forget it, my friend is stingy and tight, I just glanced at it once and didnt see it clearly. Maybe I remembered it wrong. Tao Xi was a little disappointed. Fang Sui had been away for so many years and would not be friends with teenagers. Gao Yang, who had been painting next to Tao Xi, was convinced after a long time. He pulled Tao Xi to ask for guidance in his painting. Tao Xi agreed and several of the members also joined in. Qiao Yitang looked at the scene in front of her and was in a good mood. She turned around to look at other peoples paintings, but accidentally saw two girls who had not been involved in the onlooker just now looking at Tao Xi with complicated eyes. Qiao Yitang squinted her eyes, still smiling, and then walked out of the studio. The end of the club activities also meant that the school had ended. Tao Xi finally got rid of the enthusiastic people. After eating, he returned to the dormitory and found that Pan Yan hadnt gone home, so he asked him about Qiao Yitang. What? The goddess and I said a total of two sentences, xue jie, hello and xue jie, goodbye. How could I introduce her to other wild men?! The wild man: Do you know that she is the youngest daughter of Principal Qiao, an art student and a third year xueba. It would be unfair for you to know such a goddess so easily! Pan Yan struck his chest. Tao Xi thought for a while but still didnt figure out why Qiao Yitang would know him. After experiencing Jiang Xinyuns antics, he was now very wary of the sudden goodwill shown by others. Forget it, anyway, he would only see her on the club activity day. Tao Xi went to school in the afternoon. He finally found a fairly new listening book with tape at the big bookstore in the city. After returning, he continued to study in the dormitory until midnight. On Monday the next day, he came to the classroom as early as usual. There was still only one Huang Qing in the classroom. He said hello, Huang Qing nodded at him expressionlessly, and continued reading. Tao Xi couldnt help wondering if all people with top grades were silent. Then he would be quite willing to find the Sea Witch to exchange his voice for excellent results. He also sat in his seat and began to write papers, and it didnt take long for some people to enter the classroom. Suddenly there was some noise in front of him. He didnt care at first, until a girls voice said: Could it be that someone in our class is stealing something? Tao Xi paused sensitively, but did not look up. Xinyun, think about it carefully, did you really drop your earphones at the school yesterday? It was Jin Jings voice. Im sure, I put the earphones in the drawer before going to Art Club meeting yesterday. I planned to get it back after I finished the painting, but then my mother called me to urge me, so I went straight home. Jiang Xinyun said anxiously, accompanied by the sound of flipping stuffs in the drawer. I did see Xinyun putting the earphones in the drawer yesterday, and then I went to the Art Club with her. Zhang Mengtong, who was sitting next to Jiang Xinyun, testified. Xinyuns earphones are expensive, right? Her father brought her as a birthday present from the United States. Chen Yachun added. Tao Xi didnt need to listen anymore. He was basically certain that this was a set-up, and he was certain that the earphone must be in his drawer now. The Wenhua No. 1 High School was as free as wind. In order to protect the privacy of students, no surveillance was installed in the classrooms. The cameras used for live broadcast were only turned on during class, so there was no way to prove himself. To be honest, he had seen this old-fashioned method many times, in middle school. The broken middle school he studied in Qingshui County was notoriously messy. If you couldnt stand a person, just stuff things in the persons drawer. The next day, when you were framing them, everyone in your class would follow you to catch the thief. This person then would be completely isolated from then on. He understood that it was because he had been treated this way, but his solution was rude, which was fighting. Reckless play, as long as you were cruel to others and yourself, those people would be afraid. Until he obtained teachers favour because of his grades. Coupled with his notoriety, gradually no one dared to bully him. But Tao Xi never thought of encountering such a thing in Wenhua No. 1 High School. He thought everyone was as graceful as on the surface. He didnt understand why Jiang Xinyun hated himself so much. But he knew that he couldnt provoke the people in Wenhua No. 1 High School, because no one would protect him. He was not a student here, and this was big issue. This incident would only make him unable to stay altogether, and it would also put Qingshui No. 1 High School to shame. It would make him roll out of Lin Qinhes world in embarrassment. Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi subconsciously glanced to the side. Fortunately, Lin Qinhe had always come very late. He didnt want Lin Qinhe to see it. Why dont we search the classroom before class? Chen Yachun began to suggest. I dont think we need to search the whole class. After all, there were very few people who stayed at school after school yesterday and most people dont lack earphones. Zhang Mengtong began to direct the scene. Except for that one student in the class, who else would stay at school on Sunday? Who else was too poor to have earphones? The answer was obvious. Dont do this. Wouldnt it be embarrassing if there is a misunderstanding in the end. Jin Jing didnt seem to know the plan of her little sisters, but she seemed to eventually understand it. Searching someones table is an invasion of privacy! Huang Qing, who had not spoken, stood up and spoke, her voice was suppressing anger. Oh, I forgot. Isnt it possible that its the first person to come to the classroom this morning? Chen Yachun chuckled lightly. You! Huang Qing was obviously not in the same rank with them. Tao Xi heard the footsteps gradually coming in the back row, and soon he heard Jiang Xinyun smiling and asking him: Tao Xi, did you see anyone who went to my seat yesterday? Tao Xi stopped writing and looked up at Jiang Xinyun. This girl was indeed a little pretty. The pair of eyes were obviously malicious but still looked delicate and pitiful. Im not your tablemate, how would I know? Tao Xis expression was calm, with a sarcasm in his eyes. Jiang Xinyun looked gloomy for a moment, and Zhang Mengtong sneered on the side: But you are the only one in our class who stayed at school, and everyone else went home. Jin Jing, who rushed over, glanced at Tao Xi, sighed and hesitated whether to speak or not. The other students in the classroom were all in their seats, quietly looking over here, none of them made a sound, and some were typing on their mobile phones. It was guessed to be passing the gossip. I heard last time that the head teacher gave you a key to the classroom so that you can study on the weekend? Chen Yachun said with a clear hint. Zhou Qiang did give Tao Xi a key, but Tao Xi usually studied in the dormitory on Sundays and barely used it. Tao Xi, you see, this earphones are very important to me. I really dont want to lose it. Jiang Xinyun frowned slightly, her voice was soft, as if embarrassed. Tao Xi looked up at Jiang Xinyun, and was about to sneer when he suddenly heard a cold voice: Youd better think about it, whether the earphones are really lost. The few people in the back row suddenly looked towards the back door. Only Tao Xi didnt move, his heart sank quickly, and all the composure calmly collapsed almost instantaneously. He pinched his nails tightly into his palms until they felt painful. He didnt dare to turn his head to look at the person who was approaching, but his ears became extremely sensitive. He heard Lin Qinhe pulled the chair away as usual, but the sound of metal engraving on the floor was much sharper than usual. Tao Xi didnt dare to breathe hard, the calmness when he confront Jiang Xinyun just now disappeared completely. He folded his neck and lowered his eyes, embarrassed like an ostrich with his head buried in the sand. With a bang, a black water bottle full of water was suddenly snapped on the table with his head buried, and then the usual cold voice sounded: Go and fetch me water. Tao Xis stiff body trembled subconsciously. After being dumb for two seconds, he stood up and took Lin Qinhes water bottle in both hands and walked to the drinking room. His fingers trembled a little, and he could only control it by holding the black water bottle tightly. The classroom was very quiet. He could hear all the movement behind in the drinking room. Jin Jing broke the stagnant atmosphere and took the initiative to explain to Lin Qinhe: Xinyun said that the earphones were dropped in the classroom yesterday, but she couldnt find it today, so she asked Tao Xi if he saw it. This may be a bit of a misunderstanding. She had already guessed that Jiang Xinyun was responsible for this incident, but Jiang Xinyun was her friend after all, and she wanted to give Jiang Xinyun a step down. But Lin Qinhe didnt respond to her. He leaned on the back of the chair in a relaxed posture, placed one hand on the desk, tapped the table with his slender index finger and looked up at Jiang Xinyun slightly. His voice was not warm at all: Ill ask you again, is it really lost? Jiang Xinyuns face was pale, and she took a half step back subconsciously. It was obvious that Lin Qinhe was sitting and looking at her with an upward gaze. It was clear that his expression and his eyes were calm, but she felt a strong oppression, as if, if she just nodded and said yes, that gaze would actually turn into a sharp weapon to pierce her. Chen Yachun and Zhang Mengtong obviously didnt expect this to happen. They looked at each other and were a little flustered. Chen Yachuns face was even paler. She seemed to suddenly understand why Lin Qinhe had disgust in his eyes when he looked at her in the milk tea shop that day. Jiang Xinyun squeezed her hand tightly. She didnt know why Lin Qinhe, who had always come after the bell rang, would suddenly arrive early, and she couldnt figure out why he wanted to take care of the accident, but she knew she couldnt offend Lin Qinhe. She didnt dare to look at Lin Qinhes eyes again, so she lowered her gaze and said: I I might have left it at home. Ill go back to look for it at night. Zhang Mengtong also hurriedly said: Yes, I may have remembered it wrong yesterday. Xinyun, you may have really brought the earphones back. Jiang Xinyun paused when she heard the sound of fingers tapping the desktop suddenly becoming heavier. Her heart shrank, and she looked at Lin Qinhe subconsciously, but saw Lin Qinhe lift the corners of his lips slightly. He still looked at her with a very slight smile but the voice was extremely cold: Then I hope you can find it. Jiang Xinyun tried to press the horror that surged in her heart, forced an ugly smile, and whispered: Thank you, I must look for it carefully when I go back. She really didnt want to stay here for another second, but Lin Qinhe still did not let her go. He stretched out his hand and pulled the slightly skewed desk to his side to align it, and then looked at her before slowly asking: What about after you find it? Jiang Xinyun was about to cry. There were still some people in the classroom who were silently watching the drama. She had never been so embarrassed before, but she still replied tremblingly, I, I will apologize to Tao Xi. Chen Yachun, who had been working hard to reduce her sense of existence, thought that the interrogation was finally over, but suddenly saw Lin Qinhe look to her with sharp cold eyes. She understood Lin Qinhes meaning almost instantly, clutching her fingers and said hurriedly: I, I will also apologize to Tao Xi. Last time I lied to him to make him late, it was my fault. Zhang Mengtong didnt dare to breathe, and apologized quickly. The three of them watched with anxiety as Lin Qinhe finally retracted his sight, as if he was treating them as air again. He took out a heavy book from his schoolbag, and the cover seemed to be English listening, as well as a new cassette tape. He lowered his head and put it in his drawer. Jin Jing hurriedly winked at Jiang Xinyun and the others and the three of them escaped and walked to their seat with cold sweat. Jin Jing didnt left yet. She patted her chest and breathed a sigh of relief. In her opinion, the matter should be solved perfectly, and she couldnt help but sigh to Lin Qinhe: Finally its okay! I was scared to death just now! She was really scared to death. She was scared by Lin Qinhe. She was in the same class as Lin Qinhe in junior high school but had you ever seen Lin Qinhe like this? But when Lin Qinhe glanced at her coldly, and rhetorically asked, Are you okay? Jin Jing was startled. She felt that Lin Qinhes gaze looked the same as the one when he stared at Jiang Xinyun just now. The saying: enemy meets on narrow road (lit. there are people beyond the person): its from Chinese proverb ˣ (lit. There are people beyond (this) person, and skies beyond (this) sky), which means no matter how good you think you are, there is always someone out there that is better. (cr: wordsense) Xue di = male junior brother Xue jie = senior sister. Since Im using xue di, Ill be using xue jie instead of senior, for the sake of consistencies CH 15 When Tao Xi came out of the drinking water room, there were already some people in the classroom. People who came later did not seem to know what happened before. The chatting, the copying of homework, even the atmosphere was the same as usual. Class monitor Li Xiaoyuan patrolled the classroom with a discipline book while participating in small talks everywhere. He was about to turn around to patrol another row of seats when he bumped into Tao Xi who was walking in the back row. He froze and immediately greeted with a smile: Hi, classmate Xiao Tao, good morning! Li Xiaoyuan had just gotten the general understanding of the morning gossip through the private group of CIA boys established by Bi Chengfei. In order to protect the dignity of the fragile new classmate, Li Xiaoyuan gave a deadly order and asked all the members of the group to shut up, especially Bi Chengfei who couldnt control his mouth. He was determined not to mention the matter in front of Tao Xi. Thinking of this, Li Xiaoyuan grinned even more, hoping to dissolve the sadness of this poor man with his kind and bright smile. As a result, Tao Xi who was holding a water bottle with his hands greeted him with a smile: Good morning! Monitor. Then he walked briskly past him and went straight to the back seat. Li Xiaoyuans bright smile froze. Was the information wrong? No matter how he looked at Tao Xi, he didnt have the despair he expected. On the contrary, still a little happy? Why wasnt Bi Chengfei coming? Li Xiaoyuan couldnt help his desire to gossip. Tao Xi returned to his seat and saw Lin Qinhe lowered his head to read, just like usual. After sitting down, he put the water bottle in his hand on Lin Qinhes table and turned his side slightly, looked at Lin Qinhes deep profile face looking down and reading. He said in a redundant gesture: The water is ready. In fact, he just poured the water out of the bottle and filled it again with water. Lin Qinhe hummed carelessly, turned a page and continued reading. Normally, if he ignored Tao Xi, Tao Xi should wisely turn around to do his own thing, but after more than ten seconds this person actually stared at him motionlessly, he couldnt help turning his face slightly and said coldly: Whats up? His eyes happened to hit Tao Xi and he looked at his gaze. His beautifully shaped eyes were full with moist and dampness, but they flickered slightly, like the starlight that filled Qinghe1. Lin Qinhe turned around naturally and continued reading, turning another page. Tao Xi looked at the competition book and said, You havent finished reading the page just now. Unless there was a real quantum wave speed reading method, geniuses couldnt read a page so quickly. Lin Qinhe who was about to continue turning the page with his fingers, turned to look at Tao Xi, frowned slightly and said with impatience, Whats the matter? Tao Xi just wanted to speak, but the sound of reading in the classroom suddenly became very loud and turned into a morning market, just because the grade director had just passed by with a cough from the door. He was afraid that Lin Qinhe would not be able to hear him, so he leaned towards Lin Qinhe in the midst of loud and enthusiastic morning reading, half-covered his lips with his right hand, and whispered word by word in Lin Qinhes ear: I want to say, thank, you! Li Xiaoyuan, who was on patrol, kept secretly observing the situation in the last row. He suddenly had an earthquake of magnitude 8 when he saw Tao Xi approaching Lin Qinhe and whispering to him. The slender and white neck was slightly raised, and in order to maintain the balance of the body, his left hand was casually placed on the edge of the table in front of Lin Qinhe while his chest was almost hanging onto Lin Qinhe. The new classmate was courageous! Who in their class didnt know that Lin Qinhe hated others for being too close to him. Li Xiaoyuan had already imagined a hundred tragic endings for Tao Xi, but in the end he didnt see the expected scenes. Lin Qinhe didnt make any movements, and Tao Xi was whispering to him! Tao Xi, who didnt know he was being closely observed, retracted his slanted upper body after speaking, tilted his head and continued to look at Lin Qinhe. The slightly raised eyelashes were as moist as the morning dew, but the corners of the mouth were curved in a beautiful arc, as if they had eaten some candy. Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xis bright eyes. He quickly retracted his gaze, and smoothed the uneven pages of the book that he had just folded with his fingers and with a colder tone than usual, he replied: No need to. As the grade director left, the sound of reading in the classroom became sparse, mixed with the sound of small talk. Tao Xi put up the Chinese textbook with his hand to block his head, lying his head down on the desk with his face sideways and seriously said something to the tablemate: Why are you here so early today? Usually this person strived to be the last, however, it was because of Lin Qinhe loved to be late that Tao Xi had the opportunity to occasionally see Lin Qinhe being punished by Bi Aoxue to read English on the screen in the past. There is no traffic jam on the road today. Lin Qinhe closed the book without reading the opened pages at all, didnt even look at Tao Xi. Tao Xi lay on the desk, looking at Lin Qinhes beautiful jaw line looking up from below and the rolling Adams apple when he was talking, he suddenly remembered seeing Lin Qinhe on the podium for the first time on the first day of school. At that time, Zhou Qiang asked him why he was late. He said that there was a car accident on the road. At that time, he didnt laugh, but now he laughed. Tao Xi tried his best to suppress the corners of his mouth and asked: Then how do you know that I didnt take it? If it is found out, wouldnt you be embarrassed? Lin Qinhe said dismissively: You dont even have a mobile phone. What do you want earphones for? Tao Xis expression was slightly embarrassed, and he retorted in a low voice, I obviously have a cassette player. Lin Qinhe raised the corner of his lips slightly and put the book into the drawer, but his hand touched the cassette tape he had brought. He paused his hand, pushed the tape inside and said to Tao Xi: Give me. Tao Xi was taken aback, and asked blankly: Do you want the cassette player? Lin Qinhe bent his index finger and knocked on Tao Xis table. Tao Xi suddenly realized that Lin Qinhe was referring to stolen goods. He quickly put his hand into the drawer, searched for it for a while and found a small box. Then he took it out from under the desk and quickly handed it to Lin Qinhe, like a spy passing confidential information. Lin Qinhe threw it into his schoolbag casually like trash, then took out a pen and played with it in his hand. What are you going to do with it? Tao Xi asked curiously. This earphones should be very expensive. Throw. Lin Qinhe showed no mercy. Tao Xi thought this was the only way to go. He looked at Lin Qinhes slender fingers in a daze, and remembered the scene of Lin Qinhe playing the piano that day. He thought about painting the hands next time, but suddenly heard Lin Qinhe whispered: Do you know now? You dont have to respond to everyone who gives you small favour, and dont be so grateful just because others treat you a little better. ? Tao Xi was stunned. Was Lin Qinhe preaching to him about this lesson? He was at a loss for a while before he figured out that Lin Qinhe might be referring to the fact that he helped Jiang Xinyun draw a blackboard newspaper because of the a bottle of water that costed 12 yuan. If it werent for this, perhaps he wouldnt be involved in this. He didnt understand why Lin Qinhe always cared about the blackboard newspaper. Was he still brooding over the flowers he painted? Tao Xi still covered his head with the book and moved towards Lin Qinhes desk, with his chin resting on his elbow. He didnt realize that he had crossed the line. He tilted his head and raised his eyelashes to look at Lin Qinhe, asking him: Then if there are very, very few people who treat me well, if I dont respond to anything, wont no one be willing to treat me well in the future? For him, even the good of his parents and relatives was vain, and no one in this world would treat him unconditionally. Lin Qinhe looked down at Tao Xis eyes. He unscrewed the cap of the pen with a slight force in his hand, then quickly closed it again. After a silence, he replied: You can only respond well to people who are really good to you. There was no good for no reason. Whether it was good intentions or malicious intentions, it was mixed with various purposes and ideas. Tao Xi was stunned. He looked at Lin Qinhe and suddenly laughed, with a smile trembling gently on the long eyelashes. Lin Qinhe pursed his lips and said stiffly, What are you laughing at? Was there any normal person who could still smile so freely after experiencing the thing in the morning? Tao Xi suppressed his smile, but the corners of his mouth were still tilted. He happily said: Because I know whom to treat. He smiled and looked at Lin Qinhe, but Lin Qinhe didnt seem to want to talk to him anymore, so he had to get off from the table, put the Chinese textbook, and stared at the book in a daze, thinking about something in his heart. But suddenly three blank composition papers and a black pen appeared on the opened Chinese textbook, and then an indisputable voice said to him: Didnt you say that I can ask you to write anything? Then write a self-review of what happened this morning, reflect on the mistakes, and give it to me before night study. Tao Xi stared at the three sheets of paper and pen in front of him in a daze. Although he had promised Lin Qinhe, he never expected Lin Qinhe would ask him to write a self-review. Tao Xi did write a lot of self-reviews in elementary and middle school. For fighting, for skipping classes, for contradicting teachers, for speaking during class After going to high school, he learned to behave well, and his good grades were favoured by the teachers, so no one had asked him to write a self-review anymore. Tao Xi felt a little embarrassed and couldnt help but to talk back: What did I do wrong? Why write a self-review? But when Lin Qinhe glanced at him lightly, his eyes were calm but full of pressure, and he was clearly dissatisfied with his contradiction. Tao Xi gave up and muffled: Okay, I was wrong, I will write. He picked up the black pen, held it in his palm and realized that there was still the temperature of Lin Qinhes hand on it. He used some strength to hold it tightly. Then on the first line of the first sheet, the three words Written Self-Review2 were written very solemnly. As for how to write it, he had no idea at all. Those reviews he wrote before in high school were all made up without seriousness, but this was written for Lin Qinhe, so he couldnt make a joke of it. Tao Xi scratched his head in distress, and frantically searched through the thought reports and reviews he had seen before. During the night self-study, Zhou Qiang suddenly came to the classroom to find Tao Xi, and said softly to him: Tao Xi, come out with me. After that, he left the classroom first. Tao Xi was taken aback, and before leaving his seat, he quickly put the self-review he had just finished on Lin Qinhes desk, and then hurried out of the classroom. Zhou Qiang took Tao Xi out of the teaching building, walked to a secluded flowerbed, and started talking after confirming that there was no one nearby: Tao Xi, I learned about what happened in the morning. Im really sorry. I want to say Im sorry. As the head teacher, I didnt know that there was a conflict in the class and almost made you misunderstood. Zhou Qiang was very cautious in his words, and obviously he still cared about the faces of the girls, but his tone was so sincere, so sincere that Tao Xi was a little confused. Tao Xi thought about his self-review, and shook his head: Teacher, there is no need to apologize, it is not your fault. No matter how powerful the head teacher was, it was impossible to control the emotions and malices of every student in the class. Zhou Qiang sighed, raised his hand and patted Tao Xis shoulder: Good boy, it is not easy for you to come to our school. I thought it would be fine if you were placed next to Lin Qinhe. I didnt expect that something went wrong. Fortunately, it wasnt a big matter. If the trouble was big, even if Tao Xi was innocent, it would be very ugly. Zhou Qiang still had the lingering fears. Tao Xi was startled and asked, Why did you arrange for me to sit next to Lin Qinhe? Obviously Lin Qinhe hated having tablemate so much. Zhou Qiang paused and explained: Every child in the first class is excellent, and it is precisely because they are so excellent. Except for the unsurpassable Lin Qinhe, many people are actually competing with each other secretly. You are a newcomer after all, and I am worried that it will be difficult for you to blend in. Although Zhou Qiang was very euphemistic, Tao Xi still understood. Except for the people in Class 1 who were born with simple mind like Bi Chengfei, most of the people in Class 1 were very good and strong. He was a poor student from a poverty-stricken county. Even if Class 1 students accepted him amicably out of self-cultivation3 at the beginning, but if he showed too much difference, this kind of friendliness would likely turn into contempt or even exclusion. But Tao Xi still didnt understand what this had to do with placing him next to Lin Qinhe. He still wanted to ask Zhou Qiang about it when Zhou Qiang changed the subject and started to be verbose: If you have any difficulties in life and study, you must tell me. The scholarship that the school gives you should be used. If it is not enough, you can write an application to the school. The sponsor of this project is very generous. Your tuition and living expenses actually come from the fund that the sponsor gives to the school, so you dont have to worry about spending the schools money Tao Xi couldnt help but curiously asked: Teacher, can I know who the sponsor is? He always thought that this project was a collaboration between the Qingshui County Government and Wenhua No.1 High School. It seemed that there was a specific funder who had funded all his expenses to Wenhua No. 1 High School. Tao Xi remembered that after the mid-term exam in the first half of the year, the principal of Qingshui No. 1 High School suddenly announced the news that the Top 1 in final exam would study abroad at Wenhua No. 1 High School. From then on, he started preparing for the exam. The topic seemed to be a little taboo for Zhou Qiang. He thought Tao Xi wanted to thank him in person, so he kindly said: Good boy, you just need to concentrate on studying so in the future, you can go to a good university. It is the best reward. In the classroom at this time, the students were all quietly studying on their own. Of course, there was also a fleas like Bi Chengfei, who was restless and waiting for it to end. He was bored and his gaze wandering around. He was looking at the book in front of him when he suddenly heard a laugh from behind. The laughter was extremely short and quiet, but Bi Chengfeis big ears still heard it. He turned his head and looked at desk behind him like a ghost. There was only one Lin Qinhe in the back row holding a few pieces of composition paper and looking at it ??? Bi Chengfei felt that he really saw a ghost. Tao Xi was not there, then it could only be Lin Qinhe who laughed, but when did Lin Qinhe laugh out loud? He squinted his eyes and stared at Lin Qinhes face carefully, trying to dig a little smile from this perfect face to prove that it was not his hallucination. However, Lin Qinhe looked as cold as before, just looking intently at the composition paper. Bi Chengfei couldnt help but stretched his neck and leaned over there, and asked in a low voice curiously: Xueshen, what is so funny, can you show me? As a result, Lin Qinhe turned the composition paper over and put it on the desk. He coldly spitted out a word: Scram. Bi Chengfei retracted his neck and turned around aggrievedly. He thought he would not only go to his father to sign up at Neurology Department, he might also sign up at ENT Department4. How could Lin Qinhe laugh out loud? Even if he read joke books to him, this person wouldnt laugh. He must have heard it wrong. But a scene suddenly flashed in Bi Chengfeis mind. Thinking of his freshman year in high school, he used to run errands to get the letters sent to Class 1 from the guards. Sure enough, he saw that most of them were sent to Lin Qinhe from Qingshui County, and he knew from the handwriting that they came from a little girl. Most of them were sent by the same girl. Bi Chengfei was deeply impressed by this unique handwriting, because every time he went to get a letter, there would be a letter from this girl. There were six or seven letters every month and an extra one was added during the holidays. He was almost moved by this spirit, but this girl didnt seem to have a good taste, and her handwriting was the same as non-mainstream Martian writing5. Bi Chengfei sorted out the letter as usual and put it on Lin Qinhes desk. At that time, Lin Qinhe seemed to be reading a copy of an excellent full-point essay sent by He Wenjiao a long time ago. Bi Chengfei couldnt help but joked: Xueshen, I now seriously suspect that you are deliberately late every time in my aunts English class. Let the little girl in Qingshui No. 1 High School see you reading English on the screen, and then write a love letter to you, right? Of course he was talking nonsense. With Lin Qinhes indifferent character, all the letters sent to him must had been thrown away. He didnt throw it in the trash can because of his personality. How could he embarrassed himself coming late just for a person thousands of kilometres away. Bi Chengfei felt that Lin Qinhe would say scram to him coldly, or simply ignore him. As a result, Lin Qinhe didnt say anything at the time, but smiled slightly, and then put all the envelopes into his schoolbag. The smile was fleeting, it made Bi Chengfei think that he had an hallucination. Bi Chengfei remembered the gossip that Li Xiaoyuan shared with him during the day, and suddenly felt that he was a little negligent as the CIA group owner. At this time, Lin Qinhe in the back row turned the composition paper over again, and looked at the last paragraph of the beautiful handwriting: I solemnly review and will earnestly implement Lin Qinhes important Thought of Represent6 and adhere to the three unswervingly principles of Believe in Lin Qinhe unswervingly, Listen to Lin Qinhe unswervingly, and Learn from Lin Qinhe unswervingly, and keep moving closer to the Lin Qinhes important thoughts. I will strictly follow his words and deeds with high standards, so as to learn to reject, do not respond casually to small favors, do not waste time doing meaningless things, study earnestly, work hard and strive to enter the top fifty in the mid-term exam, and live up to the glorious mission of being Lin Qinhe tablemate! Reviewer: Tao Xi A county in southeast Hebei province. This is how it looks like (1, 2, 3) : it means written self-criticism. Went to google and it shows the English word for it apparently review book but I just feel it weird to leave it as Review book or written self-criticism, so I change it to self-review instead. Not the cultivation as in martial arts story. refers to a persons behavior and conservation, which is closely linked with his personality, psychological state, moral view, cultural knowledge and things. It is the overall quality of a person. So it is a big word. It can refer to how much a person knows in a particular area, or how a person treat the others, or many things else. (cr: coolcfan) Ear, Nose, Throat (ENT) or Otorhinolaryngology Martian text/writing: usually it consists of symbols, traditional characters, Japanese, Korean. Usually they use words with homophones, similar sounds, or special symbol, and it also got quite strange grammar so its quite hard for people to understand it. Ex: martian writing: IEcGA (zhng y y hpng d jch / the eng translation doesnt make sense) simplified: ƽĻ (zhngy y h png de jch / eng: The foundation of justice and peace) Refers to Three Represent. The Three Represents or the important thought of Three Represents is a guiding socio-political theory within China CH 16 Zhou Qiang was still talking endlessly, Tao Xi complied unwillingly, while secretly watching the time on the watch, anxiously wishing to run away. Night study would end in a few minutes, he had to rush to ask Lin Qinhe if his self-review passed before he left. At this time, Zhou Qiang finally took out his phone and looked at the time, and patted his semi-bald head: Oh, why is it so late?! Okay, Tao Xi, you should go back first. Dont study until it is too late when you go back to the dormitory at night, pay attention to study and rest He hadnt finished speaking yet but Tao Xi had already disappeared. Yes, its still alive and kicking, indicating that the mood is not affected. Zhou Qiang smiled, feeling relieved. As Tao Xi ran, he scolded Zhou Qiang for finding such a remote corner. When he ran to the teaching building, the bell was already ringing. Against the rush of people in the stairwell, he climbed the three floors in one breath. Sure enough, most of the classmates had already left when he ran into the classroom Yang Duole took a leave from night study. Tao Xi thought that Lin Qinhe would leave after class, but he didnt expect him to be there. Though, he was carrying his bag, obviously about to leave. Tao Xi hurriedly stretched out his arms to stop Lin Qinhe, panting and asking: My, self-review, is it a pass? He opened his rosy lips slightly because of gasping, his white face was stained with a layer of light pink moistened with delicate sweat, and there were drops of water hanging on the tips of his eyelashes. He looked at Lin Qinhe nervously. Lin Qinhe looked down at Tao Xis face and quickly looked away and took a tissue from his desk before handing it to Tao Xi. Tao Xi was stunned. He took the tissue from Lin Qinhe and thank him. Wiping the sweat from his face with the tissue, he heard Lin Qinhes solemn and indifferent voice: Its not deep enough. Tao Xi was beaten by the words. He pinched the tissue into his palm, opened his eyes and stared at Lin Qinhe, he couldnt help but blow up his hair: Is this not deep enough?! He copied the Three Represents reports of party members he had seen before. If the party members did not write profoundly, what was profound? Tao Xi didnt want to rewrite another one. He moved closer to Lin Qinhe, raised his eyelashes and looked at Lin Qinhe with his gaze. He softened his tone and started crazily suggesting, I still have a lot of homework left and there a lots of them that I have not even written a word yet. Lin Qinhe didnt seem to believe him, his stern face didnt loosen at all. Tao Xi thought for a while, tilted his head to observe Lin Qinhes expression carefully, and his voice was softer: Didnt you say that my listening book is too old? I listened to you and bought a new one. Today I have to practice listening in the evening. I really dont have time to rewrite the self-review. He regretted that he promised Lin Qinhe that he could write anything. Lin Qinhe asked, Did I ask you to rewrite it? Tao Xi was taken aback, he looked at Lin Qinhe blankly and found that there seemed to be a flash of smile in Lin Qinhes eyes. He wanted to try hard to see if the smile was real, but he heard Lin Qinhe say: Show me the listening book. Tao Xi thought that he might have studied a wrong book. He walked to his seat and pulled out the listening book he had just bought from a big bookstore in the city from the drawer, and handed it to Lin Qinhe along with the tape on the back. At this time, there were no other people in the classroom. The people in the front row turned off the front lights when they left. Only the last row of lights still illuminated the last seats in the classroom and the two people who still havent walked out yet. Lin Qinhe quickly flipped a few pages after taking the book, and quickly concluded: This book is not good either. The topic is too simple and there is no improvement. Tao Xi let out an Ah, tangled his fingers, and said helplessly, But I cant find a better one. Lin Qinhe glanced at him, turned around and took out a heavy book and a transparent box with tape from the drawer. While handing it to him, he said in a slightly commanding tone: Go back to practice this listening book and do a set of questions every day. Tao Xi took the book and the tape in a daze. He opened the front page of the book C on it were three sparse and beautiful words written in pen: Lin Qinhe. The book was obviously new. The sets of questions hadnt been answered, and the tape was as brand-new as a blank tape. He stared at the thing in his hand blankly, having a mixed feelings. For a long time he seemed to be lost in thoughts. Dont want to do it? Lin Qinhe asked him with a low voice. Tao Xi recovered, he shook his head quickly and looked at Lin Qinhe: But if I practice your book, what will you practice? This was obviously a new book that Lin Qinhe bought and hadnt used yet. Lin Qinhe said flatly: I dont need to practice. Why did you buy it? Was this the waywardness of the rich? Tao Xi didnt understand what Lin Qinhe was thinking, but he didnt want to take Lin Qinhes things for nothing, so he asked: How much is this book? I will bring you the money tomorrow. The price of this book should be very expensive, it may cost a hundred yuan, Tao Xi couldnt help but feel a little pain. Lin Qinhe frowned and said: No need. Before Tao Xi had time to insist, he saw Lin Qinhe put the worthless listening book with the tape he bought from the bookstore into his school bag and said to him, In exchange, Ill take this one. Tao Xi was taken aback. He was bewildered: But didnt you say that this book is too simple and useless? This was not an equal exchange at all. Lin Qinhe picked up the schoolbag and said casually, Yes, so I take it back and give it to my cousin whos in elementary school. ! Tao Xi stared at Lin Qinhe, feeling offended! Just as he was about to express his dissatisfaction, in the next second, Lin Qinhe stretched out a hand to his eyes. Tao Xi closed his eyes subconsciously and felt a warm touch in the corner of his right eye. He couldnt help holding his breath, his eyelashes quivered, and he felt a finger twirl away from the skin in the corner of his eye. After the fingers left, he opened his eyes and found that on Lin Qinhes hand was actually a small piece of confetti. It should have been left when he wiped his sweat. His heartbeat became faster for some reason. Watching Lin Qinhe randomly twisted away the confetti from his fingers, the warm touch seemed to return to the corner of his right eye, and it quickly crawled to his heart and gently scratched it. Tao Xi couldnt help reaching out his hand to touch the corner of his eye, blinking a few times, and pretending to blame him: Why didnt you tell me earlier! He had a piece of confetti stuck to the corner of his eye and Lin Qinhe didnt even tell him. How do I know you couldnt see it, Lin Qinhes lips lifted slightly, and then he walked to the door with his schoolbag. Tao Xi was startled. He was sure that he had saw it right C Lin Qinhe did smile. Then he thought angrily, he was not a dragonfly, of course he couldnt see what was next to his eyes! Tao Xi turned off the classroom lights and locked the classroom door with the key. After checking that the door was really closed, he walked towards the dormitory building with both hands holding the listening book and tape given by Lin Qinhe. It was late September, there was a hint of coolness in the evening and the faint scent of osmanthus floated in the dim campus. Tao Xi took a deep breath, thinking that Lin Qinhe would definitely feel uncomfortable smelling the scent. But now he was about to fly happily smelling the scent of sweet-scented osmanthus. Lin Qinhe didnt seem to hate him. He remembered what Lin Qinhe had told him; responding well to those who were really good to him. At that time he decided that he would work hard to treat Lin Qinhe well. But he didnt seem to be able to bring any benefits to Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi thought all the way back to the bedroom. Xu Ziqi seemed to be listening to English while wearing headphones. Pan Yan was sighing while drawing. Xi Da1! Youre back! Come and help me, I really dont know how to draw! When Pan Yan saw Tao Xi coming in, it was like a weasel seeing a chicken, pounced towards him with teeth and claws. Tao Xi flexibly avoided Pan Yan, protecting the listening book in his hand and mercilessly refused: No, I want to practice listening tonight. Pan Yan cried and complained: Do you have the heart to treat your roommate in the sea of ??suffering like this?! He suddenly found that he no longer able to persuade Tao Xi. Have. Tao Xi said coldly. At this time, even if the earthquake was coming, and he still had to practice a set of listening questions first. Tao Xi first went to the bathroom to wash his hands carefully, then took out his cassette player and opened the tape. Only then did he find that the tapes had no trademarks, except that they were labelled with paper with the number 1234. Unexpectedly, for such a beautiful book, the tape packaging was quite simple. He put the tape into the player and plugged in the earphones. After finishing a set of questions carefully, he found that the questions were really difficult, and there were many wrong answers. No wonder Lin Qinhe said that the book he bought was too simple. He closed the book after listening to the questions he answered wrong for several times and went to the bathroom to take a bath. When Tao Xi came out of the bathroom after washing, he saw Xu Ziqi standing at his desk looking through his listening book. He rushed in a few steps and slapped Xu Ziqis hand vigorously. Picking up the listening book and holding it in his arms, he looked at Xu Ziqi with a gloomy face and said coldly: Who allows you to move my things? He pressed the word my very hard. Xu Ziqi was startled, he hold his sore wrist that was beaten. Tao Xis expression was terrifying, and he actually felt a trace of fear, but soon this fear turned into anger. I just flipped a page and its not broken. Why are you so stingy?! Xu Ziqi glanced at his already a little red and swollen wrist, staring at Tao Xi angrily before speaking in a strange manner: And this book clearly says Lin Qinhes name, who knows if you stole it from him? He had seen this listening book before. It was compiled by a well-known English professor for his and his friends children to practice listening. It was never put on the shelves for external sales. It was not a surprise for Lin Qinhe to have it, but how could it be given to Tao Xi? He had stayed in the first class for two months and tried to curry favor with Lin Qinhe, but never succeeded. Lin Qinhe never gave any unfamiliar people a good face. The word steal irritated Tao Xi, and together with the mornings affairs, he was extremely uncomfortable. He had been pretending to be a grandson2 in this school for so long. He just wanted to stay with Lin Qinhe, but if someone touched what Lin Qinhe gave him Tao Xi looked at Xu Ziqi. With a sneer, he kicked Xu Ziqis chair abruptly. After a few loud noises, the chair flew to the bedroom door before it bounced back to the ground. Xu Ziqi was frightened by the violent movement and backed up a few steps. His complexion turned pale and he looked at Tao Xi like a madman. Tao Xis eyes were too gloomy and sharp. He always thought this student who had transferred from the countryside was weak and timid. He had never seen him with such a terrible side? Tao Xi gently put the listening book in his hand on the table and walked slowly towards Xu Ziqi. Xu Ziqi actually had a premonition that he was going to be beaten. He couldnt help but stepped back a few steps, until he retreated to the chair lying beside the door. Pointing to Tao Xi, he said, You, what are you doing?! You will be punished for beating people! Tao Xi laughed, but there was a fierce energy in his eyes, staring at Xu Ziqi sarcastically, You are a weak chicken. Are you worthy to be beaten by Laozi*? The ones he had beaten in Qingshui County, who was not taller than Xu Ziqi? Which one didnt bow to him and concede defeat? What did you say?! Xu Ziqi couldnt believe it. Tao Xi was obviously not taller than him, and even thinner than him, but he scolded him for being weak?! He clenched his fists and stared at Tao Xi with fiery eyes. He wanted to swear, but found that he didnt have the courage to speak. Then, with fear he saw that Tao Xi walked to a place three steps away from him and stopped, biting his words and saying: Xu Ziqi, I have tolerated you for a long time. Listen to me well, this book is given by Lin Qinhe to me, and this is mine. You touch my things again, its not gonna be the chair that Ill kick next time. Tao Xi dropped these words and returned to his chair to continue working on the questions. Xu Ziqi stood stiff on the spot, his chest rising and falling violently. He had no doubt that if he touched Tao Xis things again, Tao Xi would really do what he said. But why? Why did Lin Qinhe give Tao Xi such a precious book, and why did Tao Xi, a poor student with no background, threaten him? Xu Ziqis face was blue and red, and after a while, he picked up the chair by his feet and put it back in place. He deliberately made his voice a little louder when he put the chair. When Tao Xi looked up at him coldly, Xu Ziqi took a step back subconsciously. Feeling that he was too cowardly, he stared at Tao Xi vigorously, trying to find a bit of arrogance. Tao Xi actually raised the corner of his mouth and chuckled. There was obvious contempt in the eyes! Xu Ziqi was furious. He endured it but still couldnt hold back the bitter words: Even if you fawn on Lin Qinhe, with your test result from that week, wont you be thrown into Class 3 in midterm. Tao Xi never thought that this person had also inquired about his weekly test scores and calculated his rank. He continued to lower his head to do the papers, and casually replied: Really? Then lets wait and see. Xu Ziqi suddenly wanted to slap himself, why did he set up a flag3! But he also thought that unless Tao Xi was a genius, it was impossible for Tao Xi to fly into the top 50 in two months. He must use his grades to humiliate this violent maniac! When Pan Yan, who had gone out to sleep in, opened the door and came in, he was keenly aware that something had changed in the dormitory. Tao Xi was still doing the papers as usual, but Xu Ziqi climbed onto the bed so early and closed the curtains tightly. Pan Yan couldnt hold back his mouth: Xi da, do you think that our dormitory seems to be a bit heavy, it seems that there is a deep-seated wife?4 He waited for the great yin and yang Xu Ziqi to fight him in the ring, but Xu Ziqi didnt say anything, being silent like a dumb bride in the night of the bridal chamber. Tsk, its boring, Pan Yan shook his head. Qinhe, why are you coming back so late today? Luo Zhengyin looked at Lin Qinhe who had just entered the door. Although she asked, she did not expect Lin Qinhe to give any specific answers. There is something at school. Sure enough, Lin Qinhe replied vaguely. Luo Zhengyin was not relieved, because she had other things in her heart. With a sad expression, she spoke: Lele has been uncomfortable after coming back from school. He refused to eat dinner. Yang Duole had a bad heart and asthma since he was a child. Over the years, Luo Zhengyin and Uncle Fang and Auntie Fang had been taking good care of Yang Duoles body. They tried their best to give him everything he wanted, because the doctor said that the things they needed to avoid the most about Yang Duoles illness was that him being too emotional. Ill go see him. Lin Qinhe put his schoolbag on the sofa casually. Luo Zhengyin was relieved. While everyone spoiled Yang Duole, only Lin Qinhe had never spoiled him, so Yang Duole was only afraid of Lin Qinhe. By the way, Qin He, do you still use the tape recorder in the study? The nanny asked me if I want to put it away. Luo Zhengyin asked Lin Qinhe. Some time ago, Lin Qinhe took out an old tape recorder from the storage room and went into the study every night. It seemed to be recording a tape. He only recorded a little every day, so it took a long time to record it. Although she was curious, she didnt ask. She only thought that Lin Qinhe was interested in these retro tools on a whim. Not for the time being. Lin Qinhe picked up the dinner plate prepared by the nanny for the third time from the dining table and walked to the second floor. means big/great. So I guess he means the Great Xi here?? But Ill keeping it as Xi da for the sake of consistency (and also because Im not very sure of what Xi da means) To stay low To set up a flag = jinx Թ = Those who are left out by men, those who are dissatisfied, and those who show their faces to others all day long, or grieving women CH 17 Yang Duole was sitting on the edge of the bed playing mobile games. Seeing Lin Qinhe coming in, he hid his phone in the quilt and complained: Qinhe ge, why are you back so late today. Lin Qinhe didnt answer him. Instead, he set the table beside the bed and put the dinner plate on the table: Eat the meal. Yang Duole frowned, I feel sick and cant eat. Before, Luo Zhengyin came several times to ask him eat but he just didnt want to eat. Luo Zhengyin couldnt persuade him either. Why is it uncomfortable? Lin Qinhe asked him. Yang Duole was silent for a while before saying: I saw Yang Zhengmings new lover again. In order to please me, she came to the school to give me something in the afternoon. Qinhe ge, that woman looks very much like my mother. I really feel sick and nauseous. Lin Qinhe looked at him silently. Yang Duole knew that Lin Qinhe would never talk to him about Fang Sui and he also vaguely felt that Lin Qinhe didnt like his mother, but he felt uncomfortable in his heart. He wanted to vent: Now I see people who look like my mother, of course I feel uncomfortable. Do you know, when I first met Tao Xi, I was thinking about how there would be someone who looks like my mother, especially those eyes, they are so alike. I suddenly remembered a dream I had before, dreaming that I was not a child of my mother, and you all left me behind. Yang Duoles eyes were a little red at the end. His grandparents and Mother Luo seldom mentioned his mother in front of him, so he never knew how disappointed they would be that he was not like Fang Sui. Not only did he not look like Fang Sui, but he also did not have Fang Suis talent for drawing and writing. He also wanted to work hard to learn to paint. When he was a child, the teacher asked about his dream. He always said that he wanted to be a painter like his mother. But he really didnt have this talent, and later he simply stopped drawing because of anger. They wouldnt blame him, and would instead coax him. But he still felt uncomfortable. Yang Duole raised his head to look at Lin Qinhe and said, Qinhe ge, every time I see you talking to Tao Xi, I think of that dream and I cant help but feel uncomfortable. He hoped that Lin Qinhe could say something to comfort him, but he listened to Lin Qinhe calmly replied: You cant make yourself uncomfortable and be hostile to someone who hasnt hurt you just because of a dream. Yang Duole was taken aback. He was so sad, but Lin Qinhe was so indifferent. He couldnt help but slapped the table angrily, the chopsticks on the plate rolled, and he said loudly: It is obvious that Tao Xi was hostile to me first! Qinhe ge, we have grown up together since childhood. You have only known him for a few days, but youre speaking for him! He didnt know why he was so wary of Tao Xi. It seemed to be an instinct, a self-protection instinct, as if this person meant danger to him. And he obviously felt that the way Lin Qinhe treated Tao Xi was slightly different from others, which made him nervous and frightened for no reason, as if it was a sign that he was about to be taken away. Lin Qinhe frowned, his voice suddenly becoming heavy, Yang Duole. Yang Duole was stunned. He knew that whenever Lin Qinhe called his full name, it meant that he was really angry. And he was afraid of Lin Qinhe who was angry. Yang Duole had to lower his head and awkwardly shut up. Eat first. Youve grown up. Your mother definitely doesnt want you to be like this. Lin Qinhe picked up the chopsticks from the dinner plate and handed it to Yang Duole. Like every time he used to deal with Yang Duoles temper, Yang Duole would most likely be obedient as long as he mention his mother Fang Sui. Yang Duole took the chopsticks from Lin Qinhe in silence, bowed his head and started to eat. He could be wilful, but he couldnt wrong the mother who gave her life to give birth. Lin Qinhe looked at him taking a few bites before turning around and leaving the room. Luo Zhengyin who was standing quietly outside, was relieved when she saw Yang Duole eating. The mother and son left Yang Duoles room silently. When they arrived in the living room, Luo Zhengyin asked: What is the matter with Tao Xi and Lele? Why does Lele hate him so much? She only listened halfway and didnt hear Yang Duoles words before. Lin Qinhe knew that Luo Zhengyin had eavesdropped, so he replied perfunctorily: Its nothing. He paused, and his tone became calmer, Are you all going to spoil him until he reaches adulthood? Except in front of him, Yang Duole almost did whatever he wanted, having the family playing with his temper, coaxing him back and forth. Luo Zhengyin was startled and sighed: He is not in good health. He hasnt had a mother since he was a child. Dad its better for him not to have one. We should always love him a little bit and treat him a little better. Lin Qinhe frowned, not wanting to listen to this set of words that had been said countless times. Tao Xi had been thinking about how to treat Lin Qinhe well before going to bed at night, and after thinking about it, he felt more and more useless. Lin Qinhe lacked nothing, and he lacked everything. He thought, maybe he should ask someone who understood this. There was a vacant seat in the class the next day. Tao Xi knew only after hearing people talk that Jiang Xinyun seemed to be transferring schools for unknown reasons, while Chen Yachun and Zhang Mengtong were criticized by school leaders and punished. In fact, the three people apologized yesterday, but Tao Xi did not accept it. He was not an open-minded person. Tao Xi didnt rest assured, he only had learning and Lin Qinhe in his eyes. Among the two, Lin Qinhe was more important than learning. Do you need help fetching water? Tao Xi glanced at Lin Qinhes bottle that only had half of water left during the morning break. He blinked as he asked. No need to. Oh. Tao Xi picked up Lin Qinhes water bottle and walked to the drinking room without looking back. He discovered that Lin Qinhe often denied it habitually, not really because of not wanting it. Tao Xi filled Lin Qinhes water bottle with water and returned to his seat, put it on Lin Qinhes desk, and said with a smile, Youre welcome. Lin Qinhe lowered his head and turned the next page. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe, but fell into thought again. Could it be that he was only a little water-fetching brother, no other use? It was impossible for him to talk to Lin Qinhe during class. After class, he was different from Lin Qinhe. Not to mention, there was always an annoying Yang Duole next to Lin Qinhe. Study? He himself needed to be tutored by Lin Qinhe. Life? He himself was the target of poverty alleviation. Tao Xi put his head on his arm and tilted his head to look at Lin Qinhes side in a daze. After thinking for a while, he still didnt figure out what he could do for Lin Qinhe. He decided to ask someone. Just when he was about to withdraw his gaze, he suddenly realized that Lin Qinhes ear tips seemed a little red? The autumn in September was indeed a hot, but there was air conditioning in the classroom. Tao Xi thought for a while and asked empathetically, Do I need to lower the temperature of the air conditioner? You seem to be a little hot. As a result, Lin Qinhe didnt say anything, but stood up and walked out of the classroom. Tao Xi was stunned, wondering what happened to Lin Qinhe. In an attitude of eagerness for knowledge, the first one to find was the most familiar Bi Chengfei. How to be nice to someone? Its not easy. Help her with her English homework, buy her ice cream in summer, buy her hot milk tea in winter, play basketball to make her happy, and pour her a cup of hot water if she feels sick Bi Chengfei kept teaching his own experience of chasing Jin Jing without realizing that this experience was unsuccessful. Tao Xi thought, his brain must have been caught in the door1 before asking Bi Chengfei. After the club activities on Sunday, Tao Xi packed up his painting tools and prepared to leave, but was stopped by Qiao Yitang: Xue di, lets have a meal together at noon. Tao Xi looked at Qiao Yitangs smiling face, and the strange feeling in his heart came out again. He always felt that Qiao Yitang looked at him like a medical student looking at a white mouse, full of indescribable research desire. He thought of the self-review given to Lin Qinhe and immediately refused: I eat very casually at noon. Xue jie, you must not be used to it. Qiao Yitang did not give up, and said in a good manner: I also eat casually. If you want to eat noodles, I also can eat it. Dont be nervous, it is a tradition in our club that the president and the member to have a heart-to-heart talk. You didnt come to the last club dinner, so I must make it up for you. Tao Xi was still hesitating, but he listened to Qiao Yitangs self-promotion: If you dont understand anything, you can ask me; study, life and even personal emotions. I can satisfy you with all these questions. Tao Xi was moved. He did have very important questions to ask, and Qiao Yitang was not in his class, which made him very relieved. In a cheap roadside noodle restaurant, after Qiao Yitang talked about her few fans, she put down the chopsticks and stretched out her two hands. She counted her fingers and said leisurely: You really found the right person for this question. I have had ten boyfriends since elementary school. The current boyfriend is in his second year at Wenhua University School of Medicine. Tao Xi was a little puzzled. He just asked how to treat someone nicely. What did it have to do with Qiao Yitang and her boyfriend? Seeing Tao Xis face blank, Qiao Yitang thought that the silly boy hadnt been in love, so she said: You have someone you like, do you want to chase her? Tao Xi was startled. That was right, he came here all the way from Qingshui County because he liked Lin Qinhe. Yes, I want someone. Tao Xis tone was calm but his eyes were firm. Qiao Yitangs chopsticks fell into the bowl. She looked at Tao Xi in shock, thinking that she might be wrong. Want someone, no matter how you hear this sentence it was a bit too explicit, and there was even a bit of affection in that respect, but the person who said this sentence actually asked her a naive question on how to be kind to someone with a simple expression on his face. Qiao Yitang considered it and asked, What kind of person is she2? Tao Xi was holding a bowl of noodles, and his eyes lighted up: He3 is very good, has a very good grades, looks good, treats people well, kind and has a sense of justice. There is no better person in the world than him! Qiao Yitang was flashed by the light in Tao Xis eyes, that kind of passion that put the sweetheart on the tip of their heart, the passion to give everything that she had never experienced from ten boyfriends. She couldnt help but say sourly: There is no perfect person in the world. No, he is a perfect person. Tao Xi retorted. Qiao Yitang choked and said, Then such a person is very difficult to chase. If shes as good as you said, there will be many people who like her. The light in Tao Xis eyes dimmed: Thats right, and he has a cold personality and doesnt like to talk. I dont know how to get closer to him. He paused, as if thinking of something, his tone was even more lost: In addition, he has a very good friend. Qiao Yitang wondered: What does her having a good friend has to do with you chasing her? Tao Xi was stunned. It was difficult for him to explain this to Qiao Yitang, so he frankly said: Their relationship is so good, I cant help being jealous of that friend. Qiao Yitang couldnt figure it out again, why would anyone be jealous of his sweetheart and the best friend? She thought for a while and said, Why do you need to be jealous? If you like someone, you want to fall in love with her, kiss, make love, or even get married at last, and friends are just friends. If you are really together, she will belong to you alone, and no matter how good friends they are, they wont be able to enter your two-person world. Tao Xi was completely stunned. Fall in love, kiss, make love, get married He had never thought about this, he didnt dare to think, the object of these things could be Lin Qinhe. He just rushed to Lin Qinhe awkwardly, wanting to enter Lin Qinhes world and stand beside Lin Qinhe. But he never thought that he could own Lin Qinhe. Could Lin Qinhe belong to him alone? Just thinking about this for a while, Tao Xi felt that the whole person was floating, and the whole world was beginning to shine. Immediately afterwards, he couldnt help but imagine him and Lin Qinhe doing these things, but after only thinking about it only for a while, he didnt dare to think about it anymore. His entire face began to blush. Qiao Yitang amusedly looked at the boys cheeks and moist eyes, wondering which lucky girl would make such a beautiful boy wanted her, she inexplicably felt the vicissitudes of youth, and sighed: If you figure it out, just listen to me. Ill tell you how to chase her. On this day, Tao Xi learned a lot in the noodle restaurant and set a grand goal. He wanted to pursue Lin Qinhe and fall in love with Lin Qinhe. First, he needed to buy a mobile phone to download WeChat as Qiao Yitang said. On this day, Qiao Yitang was also satisfied with the gossip. She clicked on WeChat on her mobile phone and typed in an input box: Your tablemate has a crush. She seems to be a very cold girl with top grades and not talkative. Do you have such a girl in your class? ____________________________ The author has something to say: One more chapter Xiao Tao changed his mind and decided to start chasing his husband T/N: Tao Xi be like: study is important but Lin Qinhe is importanter, also Lin Qinhe got red because Tao Xi stared at him lmao ӱż (nozi bi mn ji) = stupid Both she and he sound the same in Chinese but are written differently. QYT use () here which is used for woman Tao Xi on the other hand, used () for man CH 18 Tao Xi was in a trance and excitement for the weekend that he didnt even feel jealous of Yang Duole. Even if Yang Duole occupied the position that should belong to him, he would prove that even if he had nothing, he would be better than Yang Duole. He wanted to keep the moon to his own, what were the other stars around the moon? Tao Xi went to take a closer look. Now you could buy a good smartphone for a thousand yuan, but he had to leave most of his monthly living expenses for Tao Le to see a doctor and buy medicine, so he had to make some extra money. He pondered for a whole night, but he hadnt yet figured out how to make money for the time being. On Monday, Tao Xi came to the classroom early as usual. He used to look forward to see Lin Qinhe every morning, but today was suddenly different. He wanted to see Lin Qinhe more, but at the same time he didnt dare to see him, as if he was afraid that his mind would be seen. Tao Xi stared at Lin Qinhes empty seat for a while, and then picked up his water bottle to fetch water in the drinking room. When he passed the podium after fetching the water, Huang Qing, who was trying to write on the blackboard with a chalk, stopped him. Huang Qing looked up and stared at Tao Xis height stupidly before asking: Can you help me write this sentence on the blackboard? Huang Qing was a study committee member of Class 1. Zhou Qiang suddenly wanted her to write an aphorism on the edge of the blackboard every Monday to encourage learning. She was not tall so she was going to get a stool but when she saw Tao Xi passing by, she decided to ask him for help. Tao Xi was startled, and the first reaction was his own self-review he wrote to Lin Qinhe. But he also thought that Huang Qing was a good and upright person. He had spoken to her once and she only focused on her study and would not have other thoughts like Jiang Xinyun. Besides, this writing would be finished quickly. Tao Xi nodded to Huang Qing and said, Okay. He took the paper Huang Qing handed him. On it was Zhou Qiangs carefully selected aphorisms. Taking out a white chalk from the chalk box, he walked to the right side of the blackboard before tip-toeing slightly, raising his hand and start writing on the blackboard. As soon as he wrote the first stroke, he noticed someone coming in at the door. He turned his head while writing, and it turned out that it was Lin Qinhe who walked in against the sky light outside the door, with long and straight legs. At that moment Tao Xi seemed to hear his violent heartbeat, and the world in front of him was covered with a gleaming silver light. He watched Lin Qinhe walked towards the podium in a daze, and suddenly remembered Qiao Yitang telling him that when he saw someone he liked every morning, he should smile and say good morning to him. He was just about to smile and say good morning to Lin Qinhe when his right hand holding the chalk was suddenly wrapped in a hand, and then the hand took the chalk from his fingers. A deep voice asked him at a very close distance in his ears: Write what? Tao Xis eyelashes trembled, still a little dumbfounded. He only felt that Lin Qinhe was too close to him. Standing tightly behind him, he could even feel Lin Qinhes breath behind his right ear. Huang Qing just wanted to reply from the side when Lin Qinhe shot her a cold look. Sensitively aware of Lin Qinhes hostility towards herself, she subconsciously shut up. Tao Xi reacted afterwards, his mind was confused and he forgot what he was about to write just now. He looked down in a hurry, but Lin Qinhe had already raised his left hand and took the paper in his hand from his side, as if he was half hugging him. Lin Qinhe started to write on the blackboard according to the content on the paper. Tao Xi stood still without daring to move. He squeezed the right hand that was wrapped by Lin Qinhe just now, even his breathing was very light. He turned his face slightly and saw Lin Qinhes tall nose, outlined by the morning light outside the door with a pale golden halo, like a snowy peak at sunrise. It turned out that Lin Qinhe was so much taller than him, so tall that if he wanted to kiss Lin Qinhe, he had to tiptoe, so tall that he had the illusion of being surrounded by Lin Qinhe. This illusion made his ears become hotter and hotter, and his heartbeat was uncontrollable, so he could only force himself to read the words written by Lin Qinhe. The first saying Zhou Qiang gave was: Work is improved with diligence, wasted when playing; action is formed by thinking, and destroyed by conformity.1 There were only 14 characters, but Tao Xi felt that Lin Qinhe had been writing for a long time, and at the same time it felt like he wrote it quickly. After Lin Qinhe finished writing, he put down his hand and did not respond to Huang Qings thanks. When he threw the chalk and started walking directly to the last row, Tao Xi finally recovered and quickly followed Lin Qinhe. He was very happy in his heart, his eyes were shining, but his mouth was about to ask: I know how to write, why you are doing it for me? Lin Qinhe had already walked to his seat and sat down. He threw the empty water bottle on Tao Xis table, saying, Its hard for you to stand on tiptoe. Tao Xi was stunned, and suddenly felt angry. Picking up Lin Qinhes water bottle, he opened his eyes and looked at Lin Qinhe angrily: I will grow taller! In fact, he was not short at all, it was Lin Qinhe who was too tall. Really? Lin Qinhe spoke casually. Of course! Tao Xi turned around to fetch water, feeling that todays Lin Qinhe was inexplicably childish. It also made his heart beat and him to blush. When he came back after fetching water, he found that there was something on the table. Tao Xi looked down at the documents on the table. The huge title read: The newly revised school rules and disciplines of Wenhua No. 1 High School. He looked at Lin Qinhe blankly and asked, You give it to me? Lin Qinhe said lightly: As a new student, you should take a good look. Tao Xi wondered if he had violated the school rules? He began to look down nervously. Ten minutes later, he looked at Lin Qinhe and said, Im finished. Whats the point? Lin Qinhe asked. Tao Xi didnt expect that he still needed to focus on the school rules key points. He tentatively said, No fighting, no smoking, no drinking? Dont worry, I wont do this. In fact, he felt a little guilty because he had just threatened Xu Ziqi with violence. As a result, Lin Qinhe frowned and replied coldly: No. Tao Xi tilted his head for a moment, then said, No perm, no dye, no tattoo? I dont have the money to do this. Lin Qinhe seemed to have run out of patience, so he took the school rulebook, drew a circle with a pen, and put it on Tao Xis desk. Tao Xi looked down, the eighth article was circled. The eighth article was: Do not fall in love early Tao Xis heart stopped beating suddenly. He thought almost instantly, could it be that Lin Qinhe had noticed his thoughts? But he obviously only saw Lin Qinhe today. He looked at Lin Qinhe and talked back to cover up his guilty conscience: But isnt the principals daughter also in early love? Afraid that Lin Qinhe would not know her, he added, Its Qiao xue jie from the third grade, the president of our art club. Qiao Yitang had ten boyfriends, but Tao Xi only wanted to have one boyfriend. Lin Qinhe who was obviously angry because of him talking back raised his eyebrows and asked, She is the principals daughter, how about you? Well, he was nothing. Tao Xi didnt expect Lin Qinhe to tell him not to fall in love on the first day when he decided to pursue Lin Qinhe. Really lived in Waterloo2. . Tao Xi was more puzzled than sad. He paused and asked: Why do you suddenly emphasize this to me? Lin Qinhe was silent before replying: You only rank 138th in the first-semester exam. According to this score, you can only enter Class 3. Youre the fifth lowest in the English quiz, you missed the last question of multiple choice question and two big questions in the math practice papers, and you missed several questions that shouldnt be wrong in the comprehensive test. Even if you get the highest score in the Chinese test, you cant score in other subjects. Tao Xi was completely stunned. It was the first time that he heard Lin Qinhe say so much in one breath. He looked at Lin Qinhe and asked in astonishment: How do you know so clearly? Lin Qinhe averted his gaze, and said flatly: That was what the head teacher said. Tao Xi knew it. Zhou Qiang probably was anxious about his grades, worried that he would fall in love at the new school, so he nagged Lin Qinhe to supervise his studies. Lin Qinhe must have been annoyed hearing that before finally telling him. He nodded obediently: I know, I will study hard and I will never fall in love early. The displeasure on Lin Qinhes face disappeared a little. He hummed, put on the headphones and went to read. Tao Xi thought, Thats strange. He suddenly felt that Lin Qinhe was like his parent. And he was a teenager in a rebellious period. ___________________________________ The author has something to say: Xiaolin shot himself in the foot ҵڻңг˼. A saying that means your work will be improved by hardworking but ruined by wasting too much time in having fun, success comes from thinking and is destroyed by conformity (cr: hinative). I dont translate it literally Waterloo is used as a metaphor for tragic failure CH 19 Although he drew a pie1 for himself to catch Lin Qinhe, and had a free guidance from his military adviser Qiao Yitang, Tao Xi was still very confused. Qiao Yitang said when chasing someone who was too cold and difficult to deal with, he shouldnt be impulsive and write a love letter. Eight out of ten he would be ruthlessly rejected and there was a high probability that they would no longer be able to appear within three meters of him. Tao Xi imagined that if he told Lin Qinhe directly that he liked him, Lin Qinhe might make him a missing person in Wenhua No. 1 High School. He couldnt help but shudder. Qiao Yitang said, chasing an ice cube2, he had to moisten things3 silently and gradually melt him with a constant temperature, brush his presence in front of him every day, and gave him a little care every day. Over time, boiled the frog in warm water4 , no, boil ice cubes, he would not be used to the sudden disappearance of this concern, and would gradually accept and rely on this affection. But Qiao Yitang only gave him the theory, and the practical methods given were too difficult for him. He really had no money to buy a glass of milk or milk tea every day for Lin Qinhe, and Lin Qinhe certainly didnt like it either. In physical education class, Tao Xi was looking for benches for self-study, and he unintentionally listened to the chats of a few girls gossiping. My boyfriend? He also sends me a WeChat voice message every night before going to bed. Hey, I guess its nothing but baby, I love you over and over again. Its not so cringy! My boyfriend reads a bedtime story to me every day, okay. Hey, its a thousand and one nights5, your boyfriend is quite good at it. Tao Xi passed by quietly. In the evening, during the rest time before the evening self-study, Bi Chengfei rushed back to the classroom, sweating after playing basketball. He was drinking a few mouthfuls of cold water when he saw Tao Xi lying on the desk writing and drawing. His two arms were tightly guarded as if hiding something. Bi Chengfei quietly approached and coughed. The voice was the same as the grade director. Tao Xi was shocked. The pen he was holding almost made a long mark. He quickly turned the piece of paper on the table, raised his head and glared at Bi Chengfei before cursing, Are you sick? Bi Chengfei was not upset. He felt that Tao Xi was a bit more angry and willful than when he first came. He spoke solemnly with his hands behind his back: This classmate, what did you secretly write just now? Which girl did you write a love letter to? Give it to me! He naturally didnt think Tao Xi was writing a love letter, he was just joking, but as soon as his voice stopped, he saw Lin Qinhe who was coming in through the back door glanced at him. Bi Chengfei who was feeling quite hot, suddenly felt as cold as drinking Sprite. Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe come in and hurriedly stuffed the reversed paper into the drawer. He watched Lin Qinhe holding a pile of papers in his hand. He propped his head with one hand, and blocked the drawer with the other, and said with a guilty smile: You have to do so many papers? However, the pile of papers was thrown onto his desk in the next second, and Lin Qinhe dropped a few cold words: Finish it before the end of the month. Tao Xi looked at the pile of blank papers covering various subjects in shock, wanting to die. Who gave it to me?! He opened his eyes and looked at Lin Qinhe. Your head teacher. Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xis drawer and replied indifferently. Witnessing the human tragedy, Bi Chengfei touched his chin and wondered: When did auntie6 become so ruthless? Asking Xi ge to finish so many papers in a week, isnt this destroying the grass7? As a result, Lin Qinhe glanced coldly at him again, and Bi Chengfei groaned in his heart and shut up. Tao Xi was still struggling to death: Where do I have time to do so many papers?! He tilted his head to look at Lin Qinhe, drooping the eyelashes, pretending to be pitiful to win Lin Qinhes sympathy. However, Lin Qinhe didnt even lift his eyelids, and instead replied mercilessly: I think you are quite free. Im very busy, okay? Tao Xi retorted. But the rebuttal was invalid. Tao Xi was still aggrieved and accepted the pile of papers, and he scolded Zhou Qiang for a hundred times in his heart. At this time Zhou Qiang was drinking tea in the office. With his legs up, he listened to the old Liu Xun, the head teacher of Class 2 next door, nagging his students who didnt do homework. He sneezed and said to the boys leisurely: Do you know that Lin Qinhe, who is the first in grade, is actively studying? He just took the initiative to ask teachers of various subjects for papers to practice. You guys are still delaying homework here, are you embarrassed? Those boys showed shame on their faces. Tao Xi accepted his fate to do the practice papers and he didnt even bother to sneak a glance at Lin Qinhe on the side. Finally he finished a physics paper. When Lin Qinhe was out of class, he quickly took out the contents in the drawer and lowered his head to draw. When Lin Qinhe stepped into the door, he naturally blocked it with the paper, then poked Lin Qinhe who had sat down with a gel pen. He took out the physics paper he had just done and pointed to a question: Tablemate, enlighten me, how to do this question? The papers Zhou Qiang gave him were very difficult so Tao Xi couldnt do many of the questions. Cant do it. Lin Qinhe said coldly without looking at it. Tao Xi was taken aback. If it were others who said they couldnt do it, Tao Xi would believe them. However it was Lin Qinhe who said he couldnt do it, he must be fooling him. What made Lin Qinhe angry again? Tao Xi couldnt figure it out. Tao Xi failed to pry Lin Qinhes mouth open until the next night of self-study. It seemed that he was quite angry. Because Yang Duole didnt want to see his father, Yang Zhengming, he had been living in Lin Qinhes house for a month. In fact, to him, Lins family was his second home, and he was even more casual here than at grandparents home. He was eating fruit while writing homework. When looking for notes, he found that he had forgotten to bring back an English exercise book. He took the homework he was doing, got up and walked to Lin Qinhes room, intending to ask about the question. Yang Duole raised his hand and knocked on the door. He was very aware of Lin Qinhes personal space. If he didnt knock on the door and went in directly, he would definitely be angry. Come in. Yang Duole just opened the door and walked in. Lin Qinhe was not doing homeworks. He had probably finished doing it at school. He was sitting on the chair, reading an English novel. Qinhe ge, borrow an English exercise book. In the bag, take it yourself. Lin Qinhe didnt look up. Yang Duole flipped through Lin Qinhes bag, and when he took out the exercise book, he found a folded piece of paper. He curiously picked it up and opened it, and found that there was a four-frame cartoon in it. Who drew this cartoon for you? Yang Duole asked while reading it. He hadnt looked carefully, he had looked at it just a for moment when the paper in his hand was snatched by Lin Qinhe who got up suddenly. Lin Qinhe only lowered his head and glanced at it before folding it up, his expression didnt change at all. Yang Duole knew that many girls in the school liked Lin Qinhe, so he jokingly said, Its a girl who secretly stuffed it again? Should I throw it for you? In fact, he was just a little curious about what was drawn inside. No. Lin Qinhe lowered his head and clipped the piece of paper into the English novel he had just read, and then put the novel on the corner of the table. Yang Duole didnt insist. He spread out the homework he brought on the table and said: I cant do some questions. Qinhe ge, teach me. Lin Qinhe frowned slightly, paused for a while and replied, Okay. Yang Duole moved the chair as usual and sat down next to Lin Qinhe to listen to his lecture, but he soon realized that Lin Qinhe seemed a little absent-minded. When he was thinking about the calculation process, he saw that Lin Qinhe occasionally glanced at the English novel. In Yang Duoles memory, Lin Qinhe never indulged in the same thing. When they were young, they often watched cartoons together. Sometimes when seeing a wonderful place and Luo Zhengyin came over to ask them to eat the meals, Lin Qinhe always got up and left quickly while Yang Duole always had to delay it for a while. It seemed that this novel was indeed very interesting. Otherwise, why would Lin Qinhe still think about it when tutoring him? After finishing the topic, Yang Duole left wittily. Before leaving, he said very thoughtfully: Qinhe ge, dont read the novel until too late, it hurts your eyes. Lin Qinhe gave a hum and closed the door after Yang Duole went out. He walked back to the chair and sat down. He opened the English novel, took out the folded paper, and opened it to look carefully. On the paper was a simple four-frame comic drawn with black pens, with neat and simple lines, and Chapter 1 was written in the upper left corner, which was obviously a series. The drawing was a dialogue between a moon and a meteorite. The moon was wrapped in light and shone, while the meteorite was broken, small, and dull. Moon: Are you a star? Meteorite: I am just a small meteorite, but one day I will become a small star that will glow. Moon: Why do you want to become a star? Meteorite: Because then I can illuminate you in the universe like the sun. The signature at the lower right corner of the comic: Xiao Tao Comics Club. _________________________________ The author has something to say: Xiao Tao Comics Club has opened its doors refers to making absurd and unrealistic promises and then using rhetoric to make people believe and serve them, or to draw a pretty picture of the future that is not yet real Chasing an ice cube = literally a cold person in this context. ϸ= metaphor for teaching and educating people, subtly. It refers to Chinese poem ; ҹϲHappy Rain on a Spring Night by Ÿdu fu in Tang Dysnaty. Excerpt: ֪ʱڣ˷The good rain knows its season, When spring arrives, then it comes. DZҹϸIt follows the wind secretly into the night, And moistens all things softly, without sound The boiling frog is a fable describing a frog being slowly boiled alive. The premise is that if a frog is put suddenly into boiling water, it will jump out, but if the frog is put in tepid water which is then brought to a boil slowly, it will not perceive the danger and will be cooked to death. The implication is that changes in the general environment can determine your success and failure. honestly Im not sure what this means because after searching around, it can either refer to A thousand and One Nights book (or The Arabian Night in English) or it can also mean many Refers to Zhou Qiang. Not his biological aunt, Bi Aoxue. Remember they called Zhou Qiang aunt because he talks a lot Destroy beautiful things with vicious hands, that is to use cruel means to destroy good things. CH 20 The president of Xiao Tao Comics Club waited anxiously in the morning to exchange opinions with the only reader of the club, who was neither late nor early. Entering the classroom with a cold face, he pulled out the chair and sat down before putting on the headphones and started reading a book. The whole set of actions followed as if it was engraved in the DNA. Tao Xi was entangled for quite a while, but couldnt help but lean forward. He held out two index fingers to compare with the small square and asked mysteriously: How? His tone was like a gangster in the middle of the night. Lin Qinhe took off his earphones, his long eyelashes drooped. He glanced at Tao Xis fingers, then looked at Tao Xis blinking eyes, his tone was indifferent: How about what? Tao Xi fingers stopped for a while. Could it be that after he quietly put the drawing in Lin Qinhes school bag yesterday, Lin Qinhe didnt see it when he went back? Still hadnt opened the bag at all? He was anxious, so he took Lin Qinhes school bag behind the chair and looked down, looking more and more anxious, like a thief who robbed the bag and opened it to see valuable things were not inside Lin Qinhe frowned slightly, trying to say something, but only pursed his lower lip. Why is it not here? There were not many things in the bag. Tao Xi looked through it for a while, but he didnt see the shadow of the drawing at all, and his expression was as sad as a concubine. He stuck his head into his bag again, and carefully checked the bottom of Lin Qinhes school bag. There is no hole either, ah. Tao Xi was about to continue to check whether it was stuck in the book when he heard a very low laughter, he immediately raised his head and looked at Lin Qinhe. He caught him now. Lin Qinhe still kept his face cold, and the smile at the corner of his mouth disappeared in the last microsecond. Tao Xi squinted his eyes and said confidently: You are teasing me. Lin Qinhe took the bag from Tao Xis arms, raised his eyebrows as he said, Yes? Tao Xi found that Lin Qinhes mood seemed to be sunny today, so he decided not to care about it. He leaned over to look at Lin Qinhe, his long curly eyelashes tucked in the morning light that had slipped in. He asked with a low voice: How is it? In the meantime, he made up a reason for his behaviour: Our art club is going to transform. I plan to switch to comics. Let me see how it goes. To be honest, he was a little nervous, not because he was afraid that he could not draw well, but he was afraid Lin Qinhe was annoyed by that. After all, Lin Qinhe had always said that he wasted time doing useless things. Lin Qinhe lowered his head to read the English novel that he hadnt read last night. After turning a page, he casually commented: Its okay. Tao Xi let out a long sigh of relief. Lin Qinhe didnt say no, so it was not bad. He was satisfied. He took out the paper that Lin Qinhe gave him last night and continued to work on the question. Halfway through it, he poked Lin Qinhe through his school uniform with a pen and said, I cant do this question. Lin Qinhe seemed to be in a really good mood today. He briefly explained his idea of ??solving the problem, and then said, The Physics question yesterday. Tao Xi was stunned before realizing that Lin Qinhe was referring to the question that he asked Lin Qinhe last night which he replied that he could not do it. He shook his head and said, Thank you, but no need. I asked Huang Qing in the morning and she can do it. Then Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhes face turned from sunny to cloudy to a blizzard again. Tao Xi thought to himself that Lin Qinhe might not be as indifferent about grades as it was on the surface. Wasnt this also quite a deep prejudice to the second place? He thought for a while, and said empathetically: You definitely can do that question too. Tao Xi, in the sea of ??questions like mountains, took a little time every day to draw the comic, and insisted on drawing them for more than a week. He felt that it was easy at first, but his idea on what to draw became lesser, so he went to the library to borrow a book of The Latest Humorous Stories, which he didnt realize that it was published in 2002. One night after school, Yang Duole and Lin Qinhe got in the car of Lins family to go back. Not long after they sat there, Yang Duole saw Lin Qinhe opened his backpack and rummaged through it, looking for something. Did you drop anything in the classroom? Yang Duole asked. No. Yang Duole leaned on the seat and closed his eyes to rest. He was a little tired all day and planned to squint in the car for a while. But he suddenly heard a very low laugh. Yang Duole quickly opened his eyes and looked aside, Lin Qinhe was still expressionless under the dim car lights. Yang Duole asked suspiciously: What are you laughing at? Its nothing. Yang Duole said Oh and continued to sleep with his eyes closed. Lin Qinhe opened the paper in his hand again, and the protagonist of todays four-frame comic was a peach-shaped gummy candy. In the first grid, the gummy was walking on the street, the second grid, it was walking, and in the third grid, the peach was still walking. The fourth grid, the gummy bent down and says, My feet are so soft. After it went on like this for a few days, it was impossible for Yang Duole to not find that something was wrong. He once deliberately pretended to sleep in the car, squinted and saw Lin Qinhe taking out a piece of paper from his backpack and looking at it. After reading it, he folded the paper carefully and put it in the bag, his face calm from the start until the end. Yang Duole couldnt help wondering if Lin Qinhe had fallen in love, but as soon as this idea came out, he was choked off by himself. It was absolutely impossible. Except for Qiao Yitang, the youngest daughter of the Lin family and the Qiao family, Lin Qinhe only had a few female friends. There had been so many girls chasing Lin Qinhe over the years, but none of them had succeeded. He was very curious, but he didnt dare to secretly look at Lin Qinhes backpack. Lin Qinhe had a strong desire to control his personal belongings. No one, including him and Luo Zhengyin, could randomly take Lin Qinhes things, whether it was the school bag or the things in his room. Yang Duole remembered that when he was doing homework in Lin Qinhes room during summer vacation, he saw a wooden box placed in the bookcase. The box had been there for a long time, locked, but at that time, it wasnt. It seemed like it had just been opened by Lin Qinhe. Yang Duole quietly opened the box while Lin Qinhe was out and took a look, and found that there were dozens of letters, a rolled up painting, and a copy of Chinese composition. Because the copy of the composition was placed on the top, he recognized it at a glance. It was one of the essays printed by the Chinese Language group in the first year of high school after the final exam. At that time, the Chinese teacher in his class said that this composition was from Qingshui County No. 1 High School, and the title was The Man Who Chased the Moon. Yang Duole was impressed because his female classmate was crying at that time. When Yang Duole wanted to continue to read the letters below, Lin Qinhe calmly called his full name. That time, Lin Qinhe was very angry, and Yang Duole was so frightened that he didnt dare to go to Lin Qinhes room to do his homework for a few days. In addition to studying and serializing comics, Tao Xi was also thinking about making money to buy a mobile phone. He finally caught a business opportunity after returning to his dorm that one night. Xi da, I beg you, I really cant finish painting. You dont know how many paintings Lei jie asked us to do during the four-day National Day holiday. My hands had become Parkinson because of drawing, and my eyes are about to detach from the retina! Pan Yan wiped his tears with his hands soaked in paint. Pan Yans art teacher, Jiang Lei, was a well-known female king in the Art Department of Wenhua No. 1 High School. She had a fierce temper. If anyone dared to delay handing in homework, she could yell at this person for an hour without breathing. I really dont have time. Tao Xi simply refused. He hadnt finished papers given by Zhou Qiang yet, and the drawing hadnt being drawn yet either. Pan Yan begged for a long time, but Tao Xi still remained unmoved. He had no other choices. Thinking of his National Day travel plan, he reluctantly persuaded: Otherwise, Xi da, how about I pay you to paint? 100 yuan a piece, you can draw five for me! The tips of Tao Xis ears moved, but his expression did not show any flaws. He frowned and hesitated before saying, This is not so good. What if the painting I paint doesnt look like yours, what if your teacher finds out. Pan Yan sense a little looseness, so he quickly hit the iron while it was hot and said: Am I not believing in your painting skills? You are good, I will definitely bring you delicious food when I come back from this trip! Tao Xi hesitated for a moment, then shook his head, Forget it, I have too much homework and I dont have enough time. Pan Yan was heartbroken and gritted his teeth as he said: I will give you 200 a sheet. You dont need to paint too well, just follow my garbage level! Deal. Tao Xi snapped his fingers and decided with satisfaction. The day before the National Day holiday, the entire class was frantically rushing for the National Day homework, trying to squeeze out more vacation time. Bi Chengfei and the tablemate Hu Tong were arguing again. After the argument, they started a cold war so he turned to harass Tao Xi: Xi ge, are you going out to play this holiday? Grand-aunt will take me to Korea to watch her idol concert. Tao Xi was immersed in the National Day homework, and did not look up when he heard the words: Not playing. He didnt want to take a holiday at all. During the holiday, he couldnt see Lin Qinhe, and he didnt have a mobile phone. Tao Xi glanced at Lin Qinhe on the side, wondering what plan Lin Qinhe had, so he pretended to ask casually: Tablemate, are you going out to play? Bi Chengfei interrupted and said: I know! I heard Yakult say that he is going to Japan with Xueshen. Im so jealous. He didnt want to accompany Bi Aoxue to South Korea as a coolie. Tao Xi lowered his eyelashes, turned the pen in a circle, and said dryly: Just four days, you are still going abroad, can you have time? He also wanted to go to Japan with Lin Qinhe, but if he had the money, it would be nice to go around Wenhua City. Bi Chengfei said: Japan and South Korea are very close. But there is not much time to write homework. Xi ge, if you have a mobile phone, I can take pictures of delicious food for you. In exchange, you can take pictures of homework and let me copy them. Tao Xi was so annoyed that he decided not to add Bi Chengfei to his friend after buying a mobile phone. He threw the pen and slept on the desk, with his head resting on his arm and his face facing the other side. Bi Chengfei noticed that Tao Xi seemed to be upset, his eyes rolled, and he hurriedly said, Xi ge, dont worry, Ill bring you a present from Korea! Dont disturb me sleeping. Tao Xi said with his eyes closed. Bi Chengfei stretched out his hand to rub Tao Xis head, however, as soon as he was about to put his claw on it, Lin Qinhe glanced at him. He subconsciously retracted his paw and turned back honestly, feeling embarrassed that he stole the neighbours cat and was stared at by the neighbour. During the four-day National Day holiday, Tao Xi was the only one living in the entire dormitory building. Every time he went out to eat, he and the uncle who was left behind to take care of him had to stare at each other. Tao Xi finished all his homework in the first two days. From seven oclock in the morning to eleven oclock in the evening, he barely rested except for eating and bathing. From the third day on, he got up again at seven and began to paint for Pan Yan, three still-life paintings, and two character paintings. It would not be difficult for Tao Xi to simply paint them, but he had to imitate Pan Yans paintings. The other was carving flowers out of shit, so he had to mix shit with flowers, and the feeling was no different from eating flies. From the sunrise to the moonrise, the three paintings were completed. Tao Xi faced the three paintings and felt that he really suffered from Parkinson and his eyes would detach his retina. On the last day of the holiday, he finished the last two paintings and his hands were sore that he couldnt hold a pen. The 200 yuan is really not enough. Tao Xi gritted his teeth. He didnt know that a few years later, when he remembered that he had only sold them for 200 yuan that year, he wanted to let Pan Yan, a petty man, pay him 2 million. CH 21 In the evening on the last day of the holiday, Pan Yan came back with a straw hat and a suitcase. As soon as he walked in, he affectionately spoke: Xi Da! Did you have a good vacation? Have you finished the painting? Tao Xi rubbed his sore wrist, not having a good temper: Pay the money with one hand and deliver the goods with the other. No problem! Pan Yan gave a thousand yuan to Tao Xi. After he got five paintings, he was amazed: Its too awesome. I have a feeling of deja vu about this painting. I think it was painted by me, but I dont think it was painted by me. Tao Xi ignored it, took the money out of the bedroom, and went directly to the street to find a mobile phone shop. Seeing that he was wearing the uniform of Wenhua No. 1 Middle School, the clerk kept introducing him to the high-end machine: Look at this. It has large memory and high pixels. Even if you sit in the last row and took a picture of the blackboard, you can definitely see every word clearly. Tao Xi was very excited but the wallet said no, so he simply said: You can find one for me less than 1,000 yuan and can download WeChat. The clerk muttered: Which mobile phone cant download WeChat now? Tao Xi finally spent 999 to buy a domestically-made smart phone that had passed the season for two years. Holding the lone coin from the change, he went to the business hall to buy a phone card with his own money. After returning to the dormitory, he took a shower and lay on the bed to play with the new mobile phone. Fortunately, there was Pan Yan as a guide. After Tao Xi played around for a while, he roughly figured it out. The first one he downloaded was WeChat. He signed up for a WeChat account with his mobile phone number. The WeChat name was very honest with his real name, and his avatar was still the original grey human head. He tried to take a picture of himself with the front camera of his phone, but when he saw it, he hurriedly deleted it. Xi da, add WeChat account. Pan Yan was sorting out the photos taken during the holiday and intended to post it to his Moments. Tao Xi grabbed his mobile phone and looked at his empty WeChat friends list, and refused: Its not good today, I will add you tomorrow. He wanted Lin Qinhe to be his first WeChat friend. Pan Yan couldnt figure out why he would pick a day to add a friend, but he would rely on Tao Xi in the future, so he replied: Okay, you can add it anytime, Ill be there on call. Tao Xi decided to decorate his WeChat account, not wanting Lin Qinhe to see his WeChat account as an unfinished building tomorrow. He jumped up from the bed, jumped onto the seat and started painting. Tao Xi painted a small dark blue planet with gouache. The planet was wrapped by a silvery white band of light, flying silently in the universe. He adjusted the angle and light with his phone for a while, then took the picture, and set it as an avatar after a simple crop. Then he took a photo of the moon in the snowy night he drew during the Art Club meeting last time and set it as the Moments cover photo. After looking at the cover photo and profile picture of his Moments, Tao Xi turned off his phone and went to bed with satisfaction. The next day, Tao Xi rushed into the classroom early in the morning with a fully charged cell phone. He read English book and Chinese book for a while, before wiping the two tables carefully. It took him a long time to settle down. But he still got distracted when reading English, waiting for Lin Qinhe to come, thinking of how to talk and ask him for his Wechat ID. If Lin Qinhe didnt agree, he would pester Lin Qinhe all day. If it didnt help, he would find another classmate. Anyway, he must add him. But until the bell for the first period rang, Lin Qinhe still didnt come to the classroom The first class, the second class, the third class Yang Duole was not there either, maybe he was on sick leave, but why was Lin Qinhe miss classes? Tao Xi held the phone in the drawer and couldnt help but asked Bi Chengfei, who was known as the CIA of Class 1. Xueshen didnt tell you? He is about to participate in Math and Physics competitions. Today, he should be going to the city to participate in the competition preparatory meeting. It is a bit far away, so it is guessed that he will not come to school today. Bi Chengfei really lived up to expectations. Tao Xi was slightly startled, Lin Qinhe did not tell him. Forget it, tomorrow Lin Qinhe would come and he would ask him for his WeChat account. Tao Xi was carrying his mobile phone everywhere that day, for fear of losing it. After all, this was the first real electronic device in his life, and he had to contact Lin Qinhe in the future. After class in the afternoon, Tao Xi put his mobile phone in his pocket and went to the cafeteria for dinner, but Li Xiaoyuan caught him right after he entered the cafeteria. Tao Xi, your father is here at school. He is waiting for you at the gate. Go ahead, ba. Li Xiaoyuan just went to the gate to pick up the courier. He saw a middle-aged man shouting at the guard to get into the school to see his son. He was dragged by the guard, not letting him in. Hearing the man said he was looking for Tao Xi, he agreed to help him call Tao Xi over. Tao Xi? Li Xiaoyuan yelled again. Tao Xis expression was a little strange. When he heard his father looking for him, it was as if he seemed to have heard some bad news, and his bright eyes were covered with a deep cloud of darkness. Tao Xi took a deep breath and said thank you. He turned around and walked towards the school gate. He walked faster and faster, and finally even ran up, but his footsteps became heavier and heavier. In the twilight, the students in neat school uniforms on the campus were walking while talking and laughing, Tao Xi stepped on the drawn oblique shadow like a lead, and ran all the way to the school gate. I said that my son is studying inside. You dont believe me, do you look down on people?! When Tao Jian saw Tao Xi coming while panting, his first reaction was to slap the guards table, trying to find his arrogance after he was stopped by the guard earlier. You are a visitor. You have to register and contact the head teacher before entering our school! Otherwise, just let someone in, who knows if something will happen?! The guard on duty was a young guy. Obviously, he had argued with Tao Jian before, and he was even angrier at the moment. What do you mean?! Tao Jian rolled up his sleeves and took a big step, his voice high and loud, Laozi come to school to see my son! What qualifications do you guard have Enough! Tao Xi clenched his fists and yelled at Tao Jian in a low voice. Tao Jian paused and turned his head to look. Tao Xi stared at him with red eyes, his eyes full of fierceness. Tao Jian clapped his hands and pointed to the guard: Laozi dont care about you. Go out, dont block the door. Tao Xi walked outside the door and said to Tao Jian with a cold face. There were already many students who had come to pick up express delivery from the guard post looking at them. Oh, go to a good school, so you start commanding Laozi. Tao JIan didnt move from the guard room. He took out a crumpled cigarette and a lighter from his pants pocket, He lit it in front of the guard and caught it between his rough fingers. He shouted at Tao Xi, Laozi didnt eat anything to see you. Cant you take me to the canteen for a meal? Parents cant enter school without calling the class teacher! The guard couldnt help but say again. Tao Jian exhaled a puff of smoke, and by looking at this posture, he was about to argue with the guard again. Tao Xi only felt tired and seemed to have no energy to speak. Ill take you outside to eat. Tao Xi walked over and bent down to write his name and reason for leaving school on the guards registration form. He looked at Tao Jian and slowed down, Follow me. Tao Xi followed the narrow streets to find a noodle restaurant where he usually ate on weekends. Tao Jian was cursing along the way, Tao Xi was only silent. In the noodle shop, Tao Jian ate the noodles in the bowl with chopsticks. He seemed to be really hungry. After eating, he took a low-quality paper towel and casually wiped off the sweat on his forehead. He tapped the noodle bowl in front of Tao Xi with the chopsticks in his hand, Buy me another bun. Tao Xi put down his chopsticks and went back with two bamboo steamers of buns and put them in front of Tao Jian. Tao Jian began to lower his head to eat buns again. Tao Xi looked at the noodles left in his bowl, and was not in the mood to continue eating. When Tao Jian had almost finished, he asked, What can I do? Tao Jian must have learned from Guo Ping that he came to Wenhua No. 1 High School to study. But before Tao Jian had been working in the southern coast, why did he suddenly come to Wenhua City? Also, he came to look for him specifically. Tao Jian threw away his chopsticks, drew a tissue to wipe his mouth lumpily, took a sip of the small bottle of strong wine and burped before he grunted and laughed: I cant come to see you? Tao Xi was very impatient, but it was him who bothered Tao Jian and embarrassed him. He tried his best to calmly ask: Now you have seen the person and eaten the meal, what else is there? Although it was already October, the noodle shop was still hot. Only the iron fan on the wall gave a bit of cool air. Tao Jian took off the washed white jacket, and his rough fingers pulled a few curls of hair. After a while, he raised his eyebrows and said: Do you still have money? Give it to me first. Last month, Tao Jians factory went bankrupt and closed down. The boss ran away. Neither he nor a group of workers got the money. A fellow called him and said that Wenhua City had a job opportunity with boarding and lodging. He stood there all night. The green leather train came over. After paying some training fees, he finally found out that he was cheated. He used to spend as much as he earned to play cards, but now he only had a few hundred yuan in hand. Tao Xi looked at Tao Jian, obviously was not surprised, but still couldnt help being disappointed. He thought he was being ridiculous for still having expectations for Tao Jian, expecting him to really just come and see him. He pursed his lips and sarcastically said, Do you think I will have money as a student? Is there anyone who asks his son for money? The latter sentence really angered Tao Jian, his eyes full of fire: Dont you have a monthly allowance from the school? Except for the money for meals in the cafeteria, there are still one or two thousand left. How much can you spend as a student with that much money?! Tao Xi only felt suffocated. He tried to suppress his voice and said: You know very well, but you dont know how much your daughter spends on medicines every month? I leave the rest of the monthly allowance to Tao Le. Dont you dare to touch a single cent! Then, came endless quarrels. The owner of the noodle restaurant tried to persuade him several times, but he was scared back by Tao Jian. Several other people who ate there also hurriedly checked out and left. Laozi fucking raised a son for nothing to this day. Which of the money you spent on eating and studying was not earned by Laozi? Didnt Laozi make you study in a big city today?! Tao Xi always thought that he would never be hurt by the person in front of him again. He thought he had overestimated himself. He seemed to be calm again, but his throat was dry: Yes, you are right, but I should have grown up in a big city and studied in a good school, right? Tao Jian suddenly smashed the wine bottle on the ground. He stood up and pointed out the door and shouted loudly: Do you think I want to raise a son who is unfamiliar with me? Then you fucking get my own son back for me?! The sharp sound of glass breaking seemed to pierce Tao Xis eardrums. He closed his eyes, his eyelashes trembling vigorously. He suddenly remembered that when he was very young, Tao Jian would bring him candies and toys bought from the city when he came back from work, put him on his broad shoulders, and led him to run around the mountains and fields to play. When did it start to change? There were gossips from the village saying that he was not like Tao Jian at all, it was Guo Ping who stole someone outside, and hence, Tao Jian gradually became more and more indifferent to him. As the time spent between the two of them became less and less and Tao Xi also gradually grew up, the two became like strangers. After knowing the truth from Guo Pings mouth, Tao Jian never looked at him directly, and even ridiculed a few words, just like now. But now Tao Jian came to ask him for money and asked him to return his own son to him. What a fucking irony. At that moment Tao Xi wanted to stand up and shout at Tao Jian: Your son is in this school, and he is in the same class as me. Go and recognize him yourself! But in the end, he just opened his scarlet eyes and stared at Tao Jian with a gloomy face and sneered: You should go to Guo Ping and ask her why she did that in the first place, and then look at your own virtues. Do you think I want to have you as an old man? Tao Jian looked at this son who had always been silent in front of him in disbelief. He was furious, smashed the bowl on the table with his hand, and dropped a sentence: Ill come to you again in a few days! Have the money ready, you owe me this! He said and walked towards the outside of the noodle shop with a sullen face, and kicked the table before he went out. The dark brown soup splashed on the sleeves of Tao Xis white school uniform. He sat on the stool for a long time, and the violent ups and downs of his chest gradually calmed down. He silently wiped the soup on his sleeve with a paper towel, but it wouldnt come off. He gave up and got up to help the owner clean up the debris and soup on the floor, then settled the money with the owner and gave more as compensation. The noodle shop owner took the money and looked at Tao Xi and sighed. After hesitating, he finally asked: Whats the matter? Do you want to call the police? He listened a little and wondered if Tao Xi was abducted when he was a child. Tao Xi raised the corner of his mouth and smiled as he shook his head and said: Its okay, Im sorry to bother you. He finished turning around and walked towards the outside of the noodle shop. The red and golden glow covered every street and alley in the city, but there were still many dark corners that could never be illuminated. He walked in these dark corners and walked towards the gate of Wenhua No. 1 High School. The tall school gate stood quietly in the twilight. Tao Xi remembered that when he came here for the first time, he was full of ambition and hope, as if a new door to life had just opened, and he was about to embark on a smooth journey. But now he looked at this door, wearing a school uniform that belonged here, but wondered if he had ever walked in. Its okay, Tao Xi. He said to himself. Even if his feet were stuck in the mud, he had to climb up desperately. Tao Xi walked into the guard room and was about to register with the guard when he saw a slender man talking to the guard. He was wearing a luxurious suit that was very valuable at a glance, holding a small black shopping bag in one hand. Raising his wrist to check the time, he said to the guard: I called him and he didnt answer. Can you help me contact his head teacher? I will pass the things to the head teacher and leave. The guard was obviously very kind to the man, always smiling. In a blink of an eye, he saw Tao Xi coming in and said to the man hurriedly: This student seems to be in the same class as your son. How about you give the things to him and let him help pass them on? The man turned around and looked at Tao Xi. When he saw Tao Xi raising his head, he was slightly startled, and then showed a gentle and polite smile, before asking: Classmate, are you also in the Class 1 of second year? Tao Xi looked at the man and nodded stupidly. The man took a step closer, glanced at Tao Xis dirty sleeves, and said in a gentle tone: Can you do me a favour? This is a small gift I brought to my son when I came back from a business trip. He wont answer my call and so I have to trouble you to help me bring it to him. His words were not the least bit embarrassed that his son was not answering his phone. Tao Xi glanced at the small black shopping bag. He couldnt recognize the brand, but it should contain valuable things. He didnt really want to help, because he was afraid that he would take responsibility for what went wrong. When he was looking for a reason, he heard the man continue to say: By the way, my sons name is Yang Duole. He just transferred to Class 1 this semester. You should know him. Tao Xi looked at the man abruptly, he could hardly feel his breath at that moment. He heard a very slight cracking sound exploding in his head, and his throat seemed to be suddenly blocked by a mass of wet cotton. He seemed to want to say something, but couldnt say it. The man looked at the boys red and moist eyes and was startled. After a while, he still smiled and asked, Can you? Tao Xi lowered his eyelashes in embarrassment and nodded at a loss. He said Okay, but found that he could not make a sound at all and only made a mouth shape. Thank you so much. The man put the shopping bag in Tao Xis hand and joked, If my son is behaved, I wont have to go through so much trouble to give him gift. The guard on the side was pleased: Children like to play a small temper during the rebellious period. It will be fine after a while, you dont have to worry too much. The man smiled, as if his son was really just a little upset, He said in a helpless tone, I cant help it, he was spoiled when he was a child. Tao Xi closed his eyes and took a deep breath, holding the shopping bag and lifting his foot to walk, but was lightly patted on the shoulder with a hand. The man lowered his head and looked at his eyes. With focused and soft eyes, he smiled and asked, I just forgot to ask, whats your name? Tao Xi was silent for a while, and heard his dry voice say, Tao Xi. Tao Xi? A very nice name. The man paused, then took out a business card from the card holder and handed it to Tao Xi: If my son doesnt want to pick it up, you can call me. Tao Xi lowered his head and saw three words printed in the center of the pale gold business card: Yang Zhengming. Below was a string of mobile phone numbers, with no other content except for a very light perfume smell. Tao Xi blinked vigorously. He thought. It turned out that his father was called Yang Zhengming. He seemed to use all his strength to lift his hand to take the business card. Then he left there quickly. CH 22 Tao Xi went to the bathroom to wash his face before returning to the classroom, and then rubbed the soup stains on his sleeves with hand sanitizer. He raised his head and looked at himself in the mirror, pressing the corner of the eye with a wet finger to make sure that the eye was not red before walking to the classroom. On the way, he ran into people from the art club and said hello just like usual. He walked into the classroom softly with a shopping bag, and the setting sun was laid on the desk, like a thick layer of late maple frost. There were more than a dozen people in the classroom, most of them buried in their desks to catch up on their homework. No one noticed him coming in and even if they noticed, they wouldnt look up either. But Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe, whom he didnt know when he had come back, sitting in the last row, looking up at him in the twilight between orange red and greyish purple. Many years later Tao Xi still remembered that evening when Lin Qinhe looked at him in the twilight, and when he thought of it, the twilight would faintly appear in the corner of his eyes. He lifted his foot and walked quickly towards the seat in the last row and sat down. He briskly said to Lin Qinhe, Didnt you go to the meeting? I thought you would not be back to school today. Lin Qinhe looked into his eyes and answered flatly: I left early. The meeting must be very boring. Tao Xi turned his face slightly. He was a little afraid of Lin Qinhes gaze, as if he would be able to see something. He paused before putting the bag in his hand on Lin Qinhes desk, and said in a calm tone: This is a gift from Yang Duoles father. He didnt come today. You can bring it back to him. Lin Qinhe raised his eyebrows. He looked at the shopping bag, his voice became darker: How did you meet Yang Duoles father? Tao Xi pursed his lips. He heard Lin Qinhes displeasure and pretended to say disapprovingly: I met him at the gate. He called Yang Duole and no one answered him, so he asked me to help bring it. Lin Qinhe didnt say anything and threw the shopping bag into the school bag without a care, as if it was just a piece of insignificant rubbish. Tao Xi breathed a sigh of relief. He didnt want to remember what happened in the evening, nor the people he met. He took out his pen, lowered his head as usual, and started writing math papers. His heart seemed to be so calm and chaotic that he forgot about adding Lin Qinhes WeChat account for the day. Tao Xi quickly worked on the question on his hand, trying to forget everything through continuous thinking and calculation, but then he suddenly heard Lin Qinhe ask: Tao Xi, whats wrong with you? It was still indifferent, but it seemed like he understood all of his emotions. Tao Xi paused, looked at Lin Qinhe with a smile and said, Whats the matter? Ill just do my homework. You dont know yet, right? During the day, Teacher Zhou assigned three more math papers. He didnt know that there were still wet drops of water hanging on his eyelashes, and there was a faint red at the corner of eyes that could not be concealed by the twilight. Lin Qinhe looked into his eyes, and Tao Xis gaze flickered away. Then Lin Qinhe looked at the math paper he was working on and said, Choose C for the third question. You dont usually answer it wrong. Tao Xi was startled and looked down at the question. It was a very simple question. He didnt even know how he calculated it just now. Thank you, Ill fix it. He lowered his head and hurriedly took out the correction tape from his pencil case. He felt Lin Qinhe looking at him, and it made his hand movements more awkward for a while. It took him a while to cover up the wrong answer, and then took the pen and circled the C. Then he heard Lin Qinhe slowly speak: I remember I told you, you can talk to me directly if you have something, and I will listen. Tao Xi tightened his grip on the pen, and his eyelashes fluttered. Tell me, did you encounter something? His voice was low and even a little soft, as if to induce him to say something. Tao Xis fingers couldnt stop trembling, he squeezed the pen firmly, his chest was sore. But what could he say? Saying that his father, who had raised him for sixteen years, asked him for living expenses and was a bloody scolding dog? Said that he met his biological father and he asked him to help hand over gifts to his precious son? But this fucking was more ridiculous and funnier than drama. He could say nothing. I didnt encounter anything. Tao Xi lowered his head, staring at the gel pen in his hand, and pressing his lips tightly. Tell me. Lin Qinhes voice became deeper, with irresistible pressure. Tao Xi was silent for a moment and suddenly looked at Lin Qinhe. His eyes were completely red. He suppressed his voice and said, If I tell you that I want to cry now, but there is no place to cry, are you satisfied? Lin Qinhe frowned slightly and looked at him, but said nothing. Tao Xi lowered his head again and scolded himself fiercely in his heart. It was not good to make up a reason, and he actually said that he wanted to cry. He never cried in front of people. It was too damn humiliating. Tao Xi just wanted to take the regret pills. He picked up the pen in a panic and was about to continue working on the problem when his right wrist was suddenly held tightly by one hand, and then came Lin Qinhes cold voice: Follow me. Before he could react, Lin Qinhe pulled him up from his seat, and with such force that he staggered a few times. What are you doing?! Dont you want to cry? Find a place to cry for you. Lin Qinhes tone sounded impatient, he didnt even look back. In a few words, Tao Xi had been dragged out of the back door of the classroom. At this time it was approaching the evening self-study time so a lot of people were walking into the classroom. Some of them looked over strangely, thinking that they were going to fight. Lin Qinhe took a few steps and then released his hand. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhes tall figure and squeezed his hand, not daring to follow. Its time for night study. He said. Skip. Lin Qinhe said. Tao Xi felt that Lin Qinhe seemed to be angry again, but he never understood why Lin Qinhe was angry. Maybe it was just because he disobeyed him and didnt tell him the truth. But who let Lin Qinhe always poke him in the heart. Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe silently all the way, like an escorted prisoner, being taken to the top floor of Qiushi Building. He couldnt help the surprise on his face when he saw Lin Qinhe took out the key to open the door. What did you bring me to the concert hall? Can you hold your tears here? Lin Qinhe asked as he opened the door and turned to look at Tao Xi. Behind him was a huge concert hall that was empty and unmanned. The long French windows on a whole wall stood still, and the purple and grey mist were quietly burned by the last setting sun. It burned into the concert hall through the long window, burned on the silent black piano in the hall, and burned in Tao Xis eyes. Tao Xi seemed to hear something beating violently in the silence. His nose suddenly became sore, and his eyes were scorching hot, but his mouth bravely said, I dont want to cry. On the way to follow Lin Qinhe, those things seemed to have blown away with the evening breeze in October, leaving only a shadow on his heart. He wanted to cry now, but not because of those things. Lin Qinhe looked at him without speaking. Tao Xi suddenly remembered that he was hiding outside the concert hall that day and saw Lin Qinhe playing the piano. He awkwardly imitated Lin Qinhes gestures with his fingers, his eyes greedy and hot. But I want to hear you play the piano. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe, with a clear and gleaming expectation in his eyes, Can you? Lin Qinhe was silent for a moment, and said to him, Can. He walked to the piano chair and sat down. He opened the piano lid and looked at Tao Xi, What do you want to hear? Tao Xi didnt know anything about music. He only knew To Alice, which made him a little embarrassed. He entangled his fingers and said coyly, I want to listen to the music you played that day. Okay. Lin Qinhe stretched out his fingers, and unfamiliar but also familiar music overflowed under his slender fingers. The setting sun hanging down from the long window suddenly broke free from the twilight. The red-gold twilight shot through the glass, intertwined and jumping on the deep side of Lin Qinhes face with the last afterglow of the setting sun. Tao Xi reacted violently in the twilight, he didnt tell Lin Qinhe which day it was. Then he finally heard that the violent beating sound was coming from his chest, getting bigger and louder, resonating with the piano in the empty concert hall, and flashing together in the last afterglow. Standing in the center of the concert hall, Tao Xi looked at the person playing the piano in front of him, and seemed to be dreaming a dream more magnificent than the twilight. He thought. Only he could hear this tune. This person, he also wanted to own him alone. What is the name of this song? Tao Xi asked after Lin Qinhe stopped his finger. Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence. Lin Qinhe put down his hand and replied. Tao Xi was stunned, thinking the name was strange. He watched as Lin Qinhe covered the piano, and got up from the piano chair, he said in a very low voice that only he could hear: My birthday is also on Christmas. It was a snowing Christmas. Lin Qinhe didnt seem to hear it, he asked him, Are you in a better mood now? Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe. In the dim light, the corners of his mouth curled up more and more. He said, Lin Qinhe, do you want to comfort me so you drag me here? Lin Qinhe frowned and walked towards the door, leaving a dark back and a cold voice: Its just because its ugly to look at you trying to hold your tears. Tao Xi was stunned, and hurriedly followed, for fear that he would lock himself in. The door of the concert hall was quickly closed, and the last trace of the setting sun and the piano lingering sound were also locked inside. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhes hand locking the door, he lost his courage again, and said like a kid: I know, usually if youre in a bad mood, you will definitely come here to hide and cry, right. Lin Qinhe glanced at him coldly and walked towards the stairs with the key, without speaking. Tao Xi hated that he couldnt get rid of the stinky problem of forgetting his roots when he was happy, and asking for an inch when he was proud. I have a mobile phone, can I add your WeChat? Tao Xi took out the mobile phone he had forgotten for a long time from his pocket. Turning on the flashlight of the phone, he dangled the light in the dim corridor. But Lin Qinhe still ignored him, with a cold face that was very arrogant. It was over. Couldnt coax him back. Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe all the way back to the classroom with grief. As soon as he entered the door, Bi Aoxues cold eyes were fixed on the spot. The former and current champion of being late for English class, are you two planning to win the double challenge for night study absenteeism together? Bi Aoxue chuckled slightly with her arms in her arms. Tao Xi took the initiative to admit his mistakes with a very positive attitude: Teacher, I was wrong, and he was also wrong. We will never do it again. Lin Qinhe still had a cold face, with a very negative attitude. Bi Aoxue didnt expect Lin Qinhe to admit his mistakes so she replied slowly: Just know that you are wrong. Go back and write an English essay for me. Tao Xi breathed a sigh of relief and returned to his seat with Lin Qinhe. Bi Chengfei in the front row couldnt help turning his head back and Bi Aoxue coldly snorted: Some people dont use their heads, they can donate it to those in need. Bi Chengfei turned back silently. Tao Xi quickly wrote an English essay. While Bi Aoxue was out, he took out a paper from the drawer and started to draw his comics, thinking of what to draw for a while but he still didnt have an idea. He turned his head and looked out of the window. The setting sun was long gone, only the last bit of burnt blue ash was left in the deep purple sky. An icy moon slowly rose from the horizon, and was gently wrapped by a group of thin and soft pale white clouds, revealing a hazy and gentle light yellow color. He bowed his head and drew on the paper. In the evening, Lin Qinhe returned to the room with his backpack. He took out his mobile phone and made a call. Have the guard call up the surveillance record at the gate from 5:30 to 7 oclock this evening, send it to me. After hanging up the phone, he used a marker to circle the next date on the calendar on the desk. Then he opened an English novel, took out a piece of paper from it and opened it. The protagonist in the painting had returned to the original moon and meteorite. Little meteorite: There is a cloud in the sky, can I eat the heartbroken moon?1 Moon: No. Little meteorite: Then sprinkle a handful of salt on me and eat the little meteorite baked with salt, ba! __________________________ T/N: I actually love the Bi aunt and nephew interactions lol Im pretty sure its a reference to a song from Guo Jiayus / Tng xn yuling. The translation of the lyrics: The world is bitter, only I am the sweetest Whole sugar, de-icing, soak cubes and crispy biscuits If you encounter, the shining star Just treat it as sesame seeds The heartbroken moon, pluck it off and make dinne CH 23 As soon as Tao Xi returned to the dormitory, Pan Yan couldnt wait to tell him: Xi da, I have a few big clients here to introduce to you, all of them want to ask you to help paint, do you want to take orders? Pan Yan couldnt keep his mouth shut. Several of his buddies in the art class knew that he had a roommate who could help him paint just for 200 yuan. Plus, there wasnt much difference between the painting and his own paintings. How could these sons who were not short of money let go of this good opportunity to be lazy. Tao Xi was a little moved. He knew that Tao Jian said that he would come to him again a few days later. That was not a joke. This time he didnt get the money because he was so angry. The next time he came, he wouldnt be so easy to dismiss. With Tao Jians temperament, it was not impossible that he would make trouble at the school gate and everyone would know it. He didnt want people at the school to know, but it was impossible for him to give Tao Jian all the scholarship money. Tao Le suffers from Systemic Lupus Erythematosus that requires long-term use of hormones and drugs that cost a lot of money every month. He ate frugally and used the money he saved to regularly give it to Tao Le to buy medicine. Although he hated Guo Ping and Tao Jian, Tao Le was currently the closest person to him in the world. Tao Xi hesitated for a few seconds before agreeing: Yes, but I wont do it for 200 yuan. I have a midterm exam in one month. I dont have much time to paint. Pan Yan replied: No problem, I will discuss with them and give you a price increase. Tao Xi finally took on four more paintings at 300 yuan each. Because of the lack of time, he could only paint in the time before the lights were turned off at night, leaving him to do his homework in the quilt. As a result, he only slept for less than four hours. Because the flashlight time was too long, his eyes were a little bloodshot the next day, there was a lot of red blood on the whites of his usually clear eyes. But Tao Xi didnt pay attention. He was still in good spirits, rushing into the classroom early in the morning with a fully charged mobile phone. Lin Qinhe came in through the back door with a bottle of cold mineral water. Before the backpack was put down, Tao Xi took the initiative to take the backpack from Lin Qinhe and helped him hang it behind the chair, and then pulled the chair back with both hands, the distance he pulled out was exactly the same as usual. A whole set of movements were proficient like a five-star hotel doorman opening the door. Lin Qinhe stood by, frowning, but said nothing. After Tao Xi had done this, he took out a self-made business card from the drawer with his name and WeChat ID written on it. He put his hands in front of Lin Qinhe, raised his head and the corners of his mouth turned up as his eyes blinked to please: Young Master Lin, can you add my Wechat? Lin Qinhe lowered his head and glanced at his business card, then looked at Tao Xis expectant eyes. Those eyes were very red and swollen, as if he had been in a quilt and crying all night. He took the business card from Tao Xi, then unlocked the phone before handing it directly in Tao Xis hand, saying, Add it yourself. ? Tao Xi stared at the phone in his hand in a daze. He didnt expect Lin Qinhe to directly give him something as personal as his phone. Lin Qinhe sat down in his seat. Seeing Tao Xi still staring at his phone in a daze, he patiently asked, No? He then reached out and gestured to take the phone back to help him add it. Tao Xi recovered. He took Lin Qinhes phone farther away like protecting his own baby, shook his head before nodding: Of course I will! Lin Qinhes mobile phone wallpaper was a solid color background. Tao Xi didnt dare to look at it for too long, so he clicked on WeChat without looking at the specific chat box. He quickly clicked on the QR code of Lin Qinhes WeChat ID, scanned it with his mobile phone, and added friends. After adding Lin Qinhe as his friend, he quickly returned the phone to Lin Qinhe. Okay, you will be my first WeChat friend from now on! Tao Xi showed Lin Qinhe his mobile phone. Lin Qinhe was the only person on the WeChat interface. He raised his chin slightly, the corners of his eyes and the corners of his mouth were tilted upwards, showing off like a student who had scored a hundred points in an exam. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis eyes for a while and looked away without saying anything. He rubbed his fingers on the unopened ice mineral water bottle, and the cool water vapor stuck between his fingers. Tao Xi was still in joy. He looked down at his mobile phone, Lin Qinhes WeChat name was just the same as his name, and his profile picture was a white solid color picture. He clicked on his Moments and found that it was also blank, without any contents. Tao Xi just changed Lin Qinhes remarks to Moon1, and suddenly a bottle of ice mineral water was placed on the table in front of him. Lin Qinhe said to him, Apply your eyes. The tone was unexpectedly soft. Tao Xi was taken aback. He subconsciously raised his hand to rub his eyes, but as soon as he touched the corner of his eye, his wrist was held by another hand. The hand brushed his lips slightly during the movement, and there was a little bit of cool water vapor between his fingers. He unconsciously stuck out the tip of his tongue and licked his lower lip. The hand was quickly released, leaving a sentence: Dont rub your eyes. The owner retracted his hand, picked up a pen and unscrewed the cap. He bowed his head and wrote something on the paper, showing no emotion on his face. Tao Xi was stunned for a while, suddenly felt that his lips seemed to be hot. Thank you. He quickly picked up the bottle of ice mineral water, closed his eyes and put it on. The cold touch made the eyes that were swollen and dry from staying up late a lot better, but the lips were getting hotter and hotter, and even the heart began to scream. The English class representative Jin Jing walked to the last row to collect English homework. Since Jiang Xinyuns incident last time, she didnt dare to speak to Lin Qinhe anymore. She anxiously took the workbook from Lin Qinhe, but inadvertently saw a few meaningless circles drawn on the notes in front of Lin Qinhe. She didnt say anything and looked at Tao Xi, who was biting his lip while applying the cold mineral water to his eyes. As soon as she was about to ask Tao Xi to hand in the homework, Lin Qinhe accurately drew out the workbook from Tao Xis desk and gave it directly to her. It took a few minutes for Tao Xi to put down the cold water bottle. There were a lot of drops of water on his fine eyelashes. Seeing Lin Qinhe was reading as usual, he was secretly relieved. It was really embarrassing just now. Fortunately, Lin Qinhe didnt respond. At this moment, Bi Chengfei rushed over like a moth and rescued Tao Xi who was in the advanced level of embarrassment. Xi ge, whats wrong with you, why are you crying? Who is bullying you?! Bi Chengfei looked at Tao Xis red and swollen eyes in surprise. The eyelashes of those beautiful eyes were still dripping with water vapor, making him look as if he was crying. After a daze, Tao Xi replied, puzzled. I didnt cry. What was the matter, was he the kind of person who cried at every turn? Bi Chengfei didnt believe it, thinking that Tao Xi was pretending to be strong. He skillfully took out a small mirror from the drawer of his deskmate, Hu Tongs table and showed it to Tao Xi, You see that your eyes are swollen. Your grand-aunts Korean idol fractured his legs, she looked exactly like this after crying all night. It was just that Bi Aoxue was crying and howling, and after crying, she was ugly to death, but after Tao Xi criedhe looked pitiful. A strange word popped up in Bi Chengfeis mind Tao Xi looked in the mirror. He didnt pay attention when washing up too quickly in the morning, his eyes were indeed a bit red and swollen. He suddenly smiled: No, I used the torchlight in the quilt for too long last night doing my homework. I just stayed up all night. Only then did Bi Chengfei relax. In a blink of an eye, he saw the phone on Tao Xis desk again, and his eyes were gleaming: Xi ge! You finally bought a phone! Add me, I will immediately pull you into our group! He approached Tao Xi, half-covered his mouth with his hands and his eyes were a bit wretched. He whispered: Our group welfare is super good, we have all the gossip and resources. If you want, Ill pack all my treasured resources and send them to you. This was the biggest selling point of the groupchat for the boys that he had established. Except for Lin Qinhe, almost all the other boys were in it, sharing their own seeds in a shared manner, and communicating and learning from time to time. Tao Xi thought that Bi Chengfei was talking about learning resources, such as test questions and listening audio, so he hurriedly picked up the phone, Okay. He just added Bi Chengfeis WeChat ID, and was about to urge Bi Chengfei to pull him into the group, when he heard Lin Qinhe who had been reading and silent, said seriously: Not allowed to join groups. Bi Chengfei saw that Lin Qinhe was looking at him coldly. He shuddered subconsciously, and silently retracted his finger to pull him into the group. Tao Xi was taken aback. Lin Qinhes tone didnt leave him room for tolerance. The sudden soft shadows that had come before were gone. He was a little upset and couldnt help but retorted: Then can you send me the resources? Lin Qinhe twisted his eyebrows and looked at Tao Xi, then paused before he said, Can. Tao Xi was stunned, he did not expect Lin Qinhe to agree so easily. The unpleasantness disappeared. He slightly cocked the corners of his mouth and did not insist on joining the group anymore. Bi Chengfei, who was on the sidelines, looked calm, but his heart was full of turbulent waves. Damn, when were his two people behind his table close enough to share seeds privately?! Lin xueshen looked very serious, but he didnt expect to have an exclusive possession? Bi Chengfei didnt dare to mention the boys group and resources anymore. Hurriedly pulling Tao Xi to see the photos he took while traveling in Korea, he proudly said, Im good at taking pictures, ba. This was taken by grand-aunts 100,000 yuan camera. I have to say that the photos taken by expensive camera are different. Tao Xi looked down at the photos taken by Bi Chengfei. He used to meet photographers from all walks of life when he was in Taoxi Bay. He had seen many excellent photography works. The photos taken by Bi Chengfei could only be said to be barely in focus. He couldnt bear to hit the mindless child, so he smiled and said, The shot is not bad, this one is the best. He pointed to a visible picture of seaside scenery. Right! Xi ge said yes, I even want to learn photography and become a director in the future! Bi Chengfei was full of ambition. Tao Xi wondered if he had done something wrong. Xi ge, you think this one is the best, then I will give you this photo. You can use it as a wallpaper. Bi Chengfei sent the photo taken by the beach to Tao Xi. Thank you. Tao Xi didnt really want to use this photo as his wallpaper. Tao Xi returned to the dormitory at night, still thinking about Lin Qinhes promise to send him resources. In fact, he was not very interested in learning resources, he just wanted to chat with Lin Qinhe on WeChat. He looked at the dialog box that was saved as Moon, and there was only the I passed your friend verification request, we can start chatting now. which was automatically sent by the system in the morning. We can start chatting now. This sentence gave Tao Xi inexplicable courage. He took a deep breath and started typing in the input box. He typed very slowly, his fingers were clumsy and he often made mistakes and then had to delete a lot of words after making mistakes. What to send? He slowly typed: Tablemate, what about the promised resources? After he finished typing, he felt that it was unnatural so he deleted everything and opened a Mathematics book, randomly searching for a random question. He took a photo with his mobile phone and typed it again in the input box: There is a problem that I cant do. Can you take a look for me? He was afraid that this question was too simple and was annoying, so he deleted all the words again. After tossing like this several times, Tao Xi suddenly didnt want to send him a message. He simply threw the phone aside, picked up the paintbrush and started to paint. Tomorrow, he would hand in the painting to the art student. Before drawing a stroke, a message notification suddenly rang from the mobile phone on the table. Tao Xi quickly picked up the phone and looked at it. It turned out that Lin Qinhe had sent him a message. ? A simple question mark. A ? appeared on Tao Xis head. He was puzzled and replied with a guilty conscience: Whats the matter? Lin Qinhe sent him a picture, a screenshot of the WeChat interface. The top part was The other party is typing, the time was ten minutes ago. Fuck! Why did no one tell him that WeChat had this stupid function? ! Tao Xis ears heated up rapidly, he hurriedly posted the photo he had just taken, and then typed: I cant do this question. Lin Qinhe didnt reply again. Tao Xi breathed a sigh of relief while feeling a little lost. But not long after that, Lin Qinhe also sent a photo over. It was a piece of paper with the detailed process of answering the math problem written on it. The handwriting was thin and clear. Tao Xi was happy again, his whole face was slightly hot and he quickly replied: Thank you, tablemate! Lin Qinhe didnt say anything, just threw him a cloud disk folder. Tao Xi still didnt know much about other software, so he asked Pan Yan to figure it out. After downloading the folder, he opened it and found that it contained learning materials of various subjects organized by categories. He thought this must be much better than Bi Chengfeis collection of materials, it didnt matter if he was not added into the group. Then he replied thank you to Lin Qinhe. But Lin Qinhe didnt reply anymore. Tao Xi stared at this chat record in a daze. After a while, he clicked on Lin Qinhes blank avatar again, only to realize that Lin Qinhes Moments was no longer blank. He even updated nine photos an hour ago without any text. Tao Xi clicked on the photos one by one, and quickly realized that these photos should have been taken by Lin Qinhe while on vacation in Japan. But compared to Bi Chengfeis masterpiece, the photos taken by Lin Qinhe could obviously be regarded as taken by professional. In the ordinary streets and alleys at dusk, the quiet and lively October fireworks flowed through his lens, and the magnificent twilight spread over the shadows of everyone in the streets and alleys, as if they were covered with red leaves in the mountains of Hokkaido. Tao Xi suddenly remembered the same twilight yesterday evening. Lin Qinhe sat in front of the piano in the middle of the empty concert hall and played Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence that only he could hear it. At that time, it seemed that all the resentment, jealousy and embarrassment in his heart sinked slowly in that piano music, like red leaves falling into puddles, raindrops falling into streams and rivers. After being out of mind for a while, he gave this Moments a like. Then he saved all the nine photos, selected one of them and set it as the wallpaper of the mobile phone, and selected another photo as the background of the chat with Lin Qinhe. ______________________________ T/N: Not at Tao Xi thinking BCFs resource is study materials lol hes so innocent and pure in English CH 24 After Tao Xi was done with the four paintings, he managed to get a pay of 1,200 yuan, and one of the boys gave him an extra 200 tip because he was satisfied. If Tao Jian came to him again, he planned to give the money to Tao Jian. Tao Xi couldnt help thinking that this way of making money was actually pretty good. Art students who study fine arts were basically not bad for money. If there was an emergency in the future, he could take some emergency orders. After the National Day holiday was over, the last trace of summer heat was also blown away by the autumn breeze that arrived on schedule. Tao Xi and Bi Chengfei finished eating in the cafeteria at noon and rushed to class. Bi Chengfei was going to play basketball, but when he glanced at the weather software on his phone, he gave up: The weather forecast says there will be rain at noon, and it will soon fall. Tao Xi looked up at the sky, and the cumulonimbus clouds in the sky were dark and heavy that it could splash water with a light twist. The two rushed to the classroom before it rained, but were stopped by Pan Yan who had rushed over as soon as they reached the first floor of the teaching building. Pan Yan was anxious and looked embarrassed, he knelt down on the spot for Tao Xi: Xi da! I cant help you! Teacher Jiang saw that the paintings were painted by one person. We didnt hold back and confessed that it was you. We were yelled at all morning, but she let you pass for now The more he talked, the lower his voice. He watched Tao Xis expression carefully, but Tao Xi was not even panicked at all. Instead, he frowned and muttered to himself: Actually can see it? When he was still thinking about his painting, Pan Yan was already sweating profusely. Bi Chengfei didnt know about Tao Xi helping art students with their homework, but everyone knew about the prestigious name of art teacher Jiang Lei in Wenhua No. 1 High School. This female devil had set a record of yelling at students for three hours without gasping. Xi ge, you are too miserable. Its already not good to offend anyone, but you offend Jiang Lei. Bi Chengfei patted Tao Xis shoulder helplessly, his eyes were tragic and solemn, and his tone of voice was painful. Okay, Ill go there. Tao Xi didnt care. He and his principal had a battle of wits and bravery for three years in middle school. He was not afraid. The chilly wind was howling and the Yi River was cold1. Under Bi Chengfeis eyes, he went to the office building of the Department of Art with Pan Yan. When people were on the first floor, they would be able to hear a high-pitched soprano on the third floor, and when they reached the third floor, the eardrum issued a first-level warning. Tao Xi had just stepped into one foot when the roar came down over his head: Get over there! On the balcony of the office stood the four brothers who asked him to paint. One person was facing a flowerpot, and their head was hanging down like a bottle gourd. As soon as Pan Yan entered the office, he arched his waist and consciously stood in front of the fifth flower pot. Tao Xi smiled at the angry Jiang Lei, who was sticking her waist in the air, and shouted, Hello, teacher! Then slowly walked to the sixth pot. Looking down, there was a cactus in the pot. Jiang Lei was startled. This gunner2 was obviously a habitual offender. She sneered angrily, and stopped scolding the five art students. She pointed to Tao Xi and began to unilaterally output sound waves: Youre Tao Xi in the first grade of high school, right? You can see everything after you live a long time. Its the first time I saw a Class 1 student being an art class gunman. Is it because of too little homework or your hands are too itchy? You really thought I was blind and couldnt tell it was not painted by them? When I was holding the exhibition, you were not even a fertilized egg, you thought you could hide it from me? Are you curious how I could tell? Let me tell you, painting is just like writing, the same persons handwriting can be recognized no matter how disguised it is. Some characters cant be changed in this life if they are used to writing, and painting is the same! You want to play tricks in front of me even with your little weight?! You can draw them for a while, but are you going to sit for their art test?! Are you responsible for helping them in the Academy of Fine Arts?! I think Im going to call Zhou Qiang and ask questions. A student from the top class actually went to the art class to do business, so I will teach you a good job for him! Tao Xi kept his head down from beginning to end, and sometimes nodded in agreement, positively acknowledging his mistakes. But it was actually in one ear and out the other. The long-stored rain in the sky threw down desperately as if it was trying to set off the environment. The sound of the rain banged on the balcony railing noisily and densely, and the cactus in front of him was completely wet. He was thinking about how to go back without an umbrella and so on. After Jiang Lei roared for a while, she saw Tao Xi staring at the cactus in a daze, and suddenly became so angry that she raised a few scales and shouted: I think it is not enough to find the class teacher. I must find your parents. The son does not study well at school and does tricks every day. Do you have no father or no mother, relying on being a gunner to make money at the school? Dont know which game is topped up using parents money, I think you lack family education! As soon as she finished speaking, she saw Tao Xi, who had been hanging his head, suddenly looked up to her. There was a smile at the corner of his mouth before he said, Sorry, I really dont have family education. Jiang Lei was startled. The white and beautiful boy turned against the dark sky outside the balcony, with a pair of moist eyes pressed with a thick gloom, like the cactus in front of him, with thorns all over his body. Her heart couldnt help but shrink, but the anger of being talked back quickly overwhelmed everything. She was about to continue shouting at Tao Xi when three knocks on the door suddenly came from outside. Jiang Lei paused and said loudly: Come in. The door was opened, and a tall and handsome boy walked in with a black umbrella dripping with water droplets. The office was dimly lit with no lights on, Jiang Lei couldnt see the person clearly for a while, and asked impatiently: What are you here for? The boy put the umbrella by the door, going to the balcony, looking at the person standing in front of the cactus in the sixth pot, his tone was indifferent: Come and take him back. Jiang Lei took a closer look using the light outside. The person who came in turned out to be Lin Qinhe. Although she only taught art students, it was impossible for her not to know Lin Qinhe. In addition to his grades, there was also a profound relationship between the Lin family and Wenhua No. 1 High School. Lets just talk about Qiushi Building, it was named after Lin Zeqiu and Lin Zeshi, the two sons of the old municipal party committee secretary Lin Weiliang. Lin Qinhe was the donor of Qiushi Building and the only son of Lin Zeshi, chairman of Ruize Group. And her husband worked in the Ruize Group, and after spending a little half of his life, he still hadnt made a difference. Jiang Leis face immediately calmed down, and even a smile appeared, asking politely: Who are you picking up? This was obviously a meaningless question, because Tao Xi had already jumped in front of Lin Qinhe. Where was the gloom on his face before? Looking at Lin Qinhes eyes, they were as bright as thousands of stars. In fact, Tao Xi didnt jump, Jiang Lei just felt that Tao Xis excitement was like a kindergarten kid who saw his parents come to pick him up going home. Yes, seeing the parents. Jiang Lei suddenly remembered and was just about to say something to Tao Xi when Lin Qinhe looked at her and asked, Teacher, can I take him away? This was obviously a question, but the tone didnt sound like a question even the slightest. Pan Yan and the other five art students who were still continuing to stand in punishment suddenly cast jealous and envious glances at Tao Xi. Jiang Lei was stunned. In fact, she didnt intend to let Tao Xi go easily, but she didnt want to offend the Young Master Lin who had a deep background and she also did not want to lose face in front of her students, so she said to Tao Xi with a stern face: You can go back, but you must admit the mistake and apologize for your actions. Tao Xi lowered his head and whispered: Teacher, Im sorry. Jiang Leis complexion was slightly awkward. After Lin Qinhe came in, this brat was very obedient and did not talk back again. She planned to let Tao Xi go, but heard Lin Qinhe slowly say: Since Tao Xi has already apologized to you, should you also apologize to him for what you just said? The whole office was suddenly silent. Jiang Leis complexion stiffened and heard Lin Qinhe continue to say: Whether its the boss to the subordinates or the teacher to the students, you should not slander a person saying they do not have family education at will, should you? He paused, looking at Jiang Lei, the corners of his lips lifted slightly, but there was no smile in his eyes: Whats more, how much do you know about him? Lin Qinhes eyes were calm, but Jiang Lei clearly felt the oppression in his eyes. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe, his eyelashes trembling a few times. Jiang Lei was speechless, and her face was blue and red. She had never apologized to students after teaching here for so many years. But Lin Qinhe was obviously going to protect his shortcomings to the end. Jiang Lei couldnt help but wonder whether this student named Tao Xi had anything to do with the Lin family. If so, she really couldnt afford to offend him. Sorry, I shouldnt have said that to you just now. Jiang Lei apologized to Tao Xi at last. The tone had changed and she also complimented a few words, But I think you are very talented in painting. There is absolutely no problem with being admitted to the best art academy in the country under systematic training. Would you like to transfer from the first class to our art class? Lin Qinhe frowned and interrupted: No need. Then raised his hand to look at the time, and said coldly, Teacher, do you have something else? Jiang Lei noticed Lin Qinhes obvious displeasure and impatience, so she said hurriedly: Its okay, its okay, you go back first. She watched Lin Qinhe take the umbrella and walk out of the office with Tao Xi. Suddenly, she remembered that her husband had told her that he had met Young Master Lin at the company, and it was almost as if he was carved out of the same mold as their taciturn but fearless chairman. As soon as Tao Xi left the office, he couldnt help but smile and asked Lin Qinhe: Why are you here? Did Bi Chengfei tell you? When he saw Lin Qinhe come to the office at that time, he almost thought he had hallucinations. He never expected Lin Qinhe would walk so far in the rain to lead him back. The kind of surprise and happiness that made the whole world glow and shine was something Tao Xi hadnt experienced in a long time, so much that it was nothing to be criticized by Jiang Lei for a long time. But Lin Qinhe ignored him. With a stern face, he walked downstairs without saying a word, walking quickly. Tao Xi quickly followed and found that Lin Qinhe seemed to be angry again. Thinking that he was causing Lin Qinhe troubles, he pursed his lips and said carefully, Im sorry, Its hard for you to run so far. But Lin Qinhe still ignored him, so he had to follow Lin Qinhe to the first floor of the office building nervously. Tao Xi thought, Lin Qinhe only had one umbrella. He looked around in the lobby on the first floor, hoping to find a public umbrella. Outside the door, the rain was dense and woven, and Lin Qinhe stood at the door, holding the black umbrella in his hand and held it above his head. Looking at Tao Xi, he said with a frown, Come here. Tao Xi was startled. Did Lin Qinhe mean to share an umbrella with him? But the rain was so heavy, both of them would get wet. But in the next second, Tao Xis arm was held by one hand, and he was pulled under the black umbrella. As he approached suddenly, he seemed to smell a very refreshing scent. He didnt know if it was Lin Qinhes body or the smell of grass in the rain. His heart missed a beat. Following Lin Qinhe in panic, they walked into the majestic autumn rain together under an umbrella. The water vapor and the sound of rain in all directions immediately wrapped them in a small space. The rain came intensively on the bluestone road, splashing white steam on the ground. Tao Xi lowered his head and walked very lightly, for fear that the water from the shoes would splash on Lin Qinhes legs. After walking around for a while, he heard Lin Qinhe finally speak, asking him in a deep voice, Do you like painting for others so much? Tao Xi was taken aback. Some did not understand what Lin Qinhe meant, but he was clearly aware of Lin Qinhes displeasure when he asked these words. He thought for a while and said tentatively: I like painting very much, but I paint them not because I like it, but to make money. You can earn 300 yuan per painting. Lin Qinhe was silent for a moment and asked, Didnt the school give you a scholarship? Not enough? Tao Xi was surprised. He didnt expect Lin Qinhe to even know this. He hesitated for a while and said, Its actually enough. Maybe I spent too much money. You see, I also bought a mobile phone. I didnt even think about it when I was in Qingshui County. No matter what, dont help people paint in the future. Raising your grades is the most important thing for you now. Tao Xi heard from Lin Qinhes tone that there was no room for discussion, but he was a little embarrassed. After a pause, he said, Cant I paint even after the holiday? Painting is the only way I can make money at the moment. How else can I feed myself? He turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, and couldnt help but joke: Are you going to raise me? After speaking, he regretted it so much that he wanted to bite his tongue and kill himself. But Lin Qinhe suddenly stopped in his tracks, turned slightly under the umbrella and looked at him with downcast eyes. Tao Xi had to stop too, looking at Lin Qinhes eyes, slightly startled. He had never seen Lin Qinhes gaze like this. Perhaps because of the wind and rain, the whole world was filled with rich water vapor. Lin Qinhes always indifferent gaze seemed hazy and not real. It was as if as if Lin Qinhe would promise him that. The rain hit the umbrella hard, like his heartbeat suddenly beating noisily. Tao Xi pinched his finger and drove away the absurd idea. He smiled and said, Im kidding! I will make a lot of money on my own in the future. He blinked, The kind that is rich enough to invite you to dinner every day! He also wanted to be like everyone else; concentrating on studying without burden, going on a trip with friends during the vacation, taking pictures of beautiful scenery along the way, and sharing and liked each others Moments. But his life was destined to be harder than others. But he didnt want Lin Qinhe to know. Lin Qinhe was silent for a while, then raised his foot and walked to the teaching building again, explaining: Im not stopping you from painting, I mean, your painting shouldnt be sold for hundreds of yuan to people who dont cherish it. It should have a higher value and be appreciated by more people. He looked at Tao Xi and asked, Can you understand this? Tao Xi was stunned for a few seconds, but after realizing it, his ears started to get hot. He didnt expect Lin Qinhe to have such high expectations for his paintings, it made him a little flattered and a little confused. For him, it was already good to earn hundreds of yuan by painting. In Taoxi Bay, the villagers might only earn a few thousand after a whole year of hard farming. Could his paintings have such high value? Would they be appreciated by so many people? Tao Xi didnt believe Lin Qinhes words at the time, but he still nodded and said, I know, I wont help them paint in the future. After that, Lin Qinhes expression really improved a lot, Tao Xi relaxed and began to talk about other things. Is the midterm exam in early November? Yes, so youre on a tight schedule. Tao Xi found that Lin Qinhe seemed to be a little anxious about his grades, but he was also anxious: I have done all the papers that Teacher Zhou gave me before. After I checked the papers, I found that there were still a lot of wrong answers. What if I didnt get into the top fifty midterm exams? Lin Qinhe frowned, his voice darkened: Study hard, there is still more than half a month left. Listening to Lin Qinhes words, Tao Xi seemed to feel quite settled, and then he started to get into it again: Then if I get into the top 50, can you give me a reward? When he was young, when his classmates advanced two or three ranks in the exam, their parents would buy candy and toys, but even if he got the first place in the exam, Guo Ping never did that. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhes profile and clenched his fingers nervously, but Lin Qinhe did not answer directly: Take a test first, talk about it later. Tao Xi was unwilling. He grabbed the sleeve of Lin Qinhes left arm holding the umbrella and shook it lightly. A pair of eyes dizzy with rain and mist looked at Lin Qinhe in the gloomy light under the umbrella, softened his voice and said: No, you promise me first. He didnt realize at that time that he was doing what he most hated, acting coquettish with Lin Qinhe. He didnt even realize that he often acted coquettish because of the possibility of being favored. What kind of reward do you want? Lin Qinhe asked, not accustomed to being viewed this way, turning his face slightly. Tao Xi smiled triumphantly, and said happily: A line from an ancient chinese poem, Yi Shui Ge by Jing Ke. Lʒʒˮʿһȥⲻ߀ (The chilly wind was howling and the Yi River was cold, the hero leaves, alas and will not return). It generally means even if its something dangerous and would cost him life, he still has to do it A term for someone who does thing for someone else. Think of it as something similar as ghostwriter. CH 25 When Tao Xi returned to the bedroom that night, Pan Yan grabbed him and said indignantly: Xi da, when did you make a friend like Lin Qinhe, and the relationship is so good, you didnt even tell me! Friends and good relationship made Tao Xi couldnt help but laugh, but he replied hypocritically: Its okay. Thats okay?! Pan Yan widened his eyes, Thats Lin Qinhe! Not only are his grades awesome and hes handsome, okay? Did you know that his grandfather was once the secretary of the municipal party committee of our city, his uncle is the current secretary-general of the provincial party committee, and his father is the chairman of the Ruize Group. There is also a pianists mother. With this background, let alone students, many teachers have to fawn over him, okay? Tao Xi was dumbfounded. Although Lin Qinhe was full of the temperament of a wealthy man, he had never thought that Lin Qinhes family background would be like this. So far out of reach. Tao Xi couldnt help being worried. Can he catch up with Lin Qinhe? Xi da, why are you so scared? You dont know it yet, do you? Pan Yan thought Tao Xi had deliberately spent a lot of effort to get on Lin Qinhes network. Xu Ziqi, who had been sullen and silent for a long time, snorted coldly, speaking with a strange air of yin and yang: Will those social climber, those who climb the dragon and stick to phoenix1 wont inquire about these clearly? Pan Yan was worried that he could not find anyone to fight the ring, so he sneered: Oh, who was with Lin Qinhe every day last semester, but in the end, except for Yang Duole giving some face, Lin Qinhe didnt even look at him. Xu Ziqis face was blue. Tao Xi glanced at Xu Ziqi and smiled: You are right, I just want to climb the dragon and stick to the phoenix. Xu Ziqi glared at him, perhaps because he didnt expect such a brazen person. During the lunch break the next day, Tao Xi was approached by Zhou Qiang, he thought it must be Jiang Lei who approached Zhou Qiang to give him a lecture. As a result, Zhou Qiang didnt even mention it. He just mentioned another thing: Tao Xi, remember the funding project I told you about last time. All the expenses for your studies and allowance in Wenhua No. 1 High School come from this and given to you by the school. Tao Xi nodded, and suddenly became nervous, subconsciously wondering if this project was about to stop. Seeing Tao Xis nervous look, Zhou Qiang smiled clearly, and his tone became more kind: Recently, the sponsor of this project asked the school to adjust the funding plan. Taking into account the current cost of living and study costs, there will be no monthly allowance. You will be given 50,000 yuan first, and 50,000 yuan next semester. If you have difficulties at home, you can apply for more. ??? Tao Xi looked at Zhou Qiang in shock, he couldnt believe his ears. However, Zhou Qiang had not finished speaking: In addition, your future university funds, that is, the expenses and scholarship for going to university, are also included in the fund of this project. I didnt tell you before, mainly because I was afraid that your psychological burden would be too great. Now I want you to study more steadily and at ease, not to be distracted by other things. Tao Xi hadnt recovered from the shock. He was dumb for a while and couldnt help asking: This sponsorcan you tell me who it is? He sketched out in his mind an old grandfather with a head full of white hair and a kind face, the philanthropists in the newspapers usually looked like this. But was this doing charity? This was simply raising him as a son! Zhou Qiang still did not disclose specific information like last time: The sponsor does not want to disclose the name. Dont have too much pressure. Just concentrate on studying. For example, try to enter the top fifty in this mid-term exam and stay in the first class. Isnt it a good reward? Tao Xi knew that the question could not be asked, so he did not insist anymore, and nodded, I will definitely enter the top fifty in the midterm this time! The gaze was so firmed that it made Zhou Qiang startled. Zhou Qiang patted Tao Xi on the shoulder and encouraged: Good boy, I believe in you! Tao Xi walked out of Zhou Qiangs office, his mood had not calmed down at all, and his eyes were a little red. He thought, in fact, he also had good luck. Although his life had been exchanged, he still met Lin Qinhe through the remote live broadcast class. There was also such a generous and kind funder who helped him come to Wenhua No. 1 High School to study, and even paved a broad road for his future. Those difficult problems seemed to be solved instantly. He thought that he must be admitted to the best university in the country like Lin Qinhe, and then thanked the kind benefactor, and then passed this kindness to more people like him. He just didnt know, did Lin Qinhe want to go to Tsinghua University or Peking University? Tao Xi walked back to the classroom in a daze, and found that Lin Qinhe was already sitting in his seat. He couldnt help but threw himself on the seat with excitement, talking to Lin Qinhe with bright eyes: It seems like I can treat you to a better meal right now! The school suddenly gave me a lot of money! Lin Qinhe glanced at him lightly, without saying anything. Tao Xi suddenly thought, to Lin Qinhe, what delicious food he had not yet eaten? But he just wanted to invite Lin Qinhe to dinner. Tao Xi struggled for a while, trying to summon the courage to say to Lin Qinhe: Are you free on Sunday? I want to invite you to dinner to thank you for helping me out yesterday. He looked at Lin Qinhe anxiously, but Lin Qinhe refused without hesitation: I have something on Sunday. Then, I will invite you when you are free in the future. Tao Xi couldnt help being disappointed, but there was still time for that later. He could always find a chance to ask Lin Qinhe out. He didnt say anything else, picked up a pen and started to do practice papers. After a while, Bi Chengfei rushed over and asked: Xi ge, are you free on the Sunday? I have an appointment with a few buddies in junior high school for a basketball game. You can help me play. There are many girls coming to watch. Tao Xi refused: No, I have to do my homework on Sunday. The midterm was coming soon, except for Lin Qinhe, he didnt want to waste any time on anything. Bi Chengfei was crying sadly. Suddenly, there was a flash of inspiration, and he leaned to Tao Xis ear to say, Didnt you ask me how to chase people last time? I have a buddy who is so awesome that he chased their cold high school flower. Tao Xi really was persuaded. Bi Chengfei kept whispering. That school flower is incredible. Her dad is a high-ranking official, mom is an artist, and comes from a real scholarly family. Many boys couldnt chase her, but my buddy did. He must be very experienced! Tao Xi couldnt help but feel a little moved. This situation was simply in line with Lin Qinhe. Bi Chengfei felt that he was being stared at by an unkind gaze. He consciously sat back in his seat and stopped whispering to Tao Xi, but was still tempting him: And you can get to know more friends, my buddies are very good, they will like you too. Sunday, at what time? Tao Xi asked Bi Chengfei. He thought, playing basketball for an hour or two was nothing, but as soon as he finished speaking, he heard Lin Qinhes serious voice: Arent you asking me to eat on Sunday? This rhetorical question was affirmative in tone. Both Bi Chengfei and Tao Xi were taken aback. Tao Xi replied, uncertain, Didnt you say that you have something on Sunday? Its fine. Lin Qinhe said without changing his face. Tao Xi was not angry at him going back on his words. Instead, his eyes were shining and his tongue was tied with joy: Good, good, then Ill find out which restaurant is better. Bi Chengfei wanted to say that he could still come to play after dinner, but Lin Qinhe glanced at him and suddenly he couldnt say it. Tao Xi was excited for the whole day that he could invite Lin Qinhe to dinner. In the evening, he went back to check the delicious restaurants on his mobile phone for a long time, and had a lively discussion with Pan Yan, who knew the most about food. The old house of the Lin family was also very lively that night. The old man Lin Weiliang paid attention to tradition and had the habit of holding family banquets on a regular basis. On the day of the family banquet, there could be no fewer children and grandchildren of the Lin family. Lin Qinhe directly took a leave for the night study. Lin Jixuan was talking to her father, Lin Zeqiu, and her five-year-old son Tang Nan kept annoying her on her side. She yelled angrily: Go, let your little uncle tell a story. She had originally agreed with Lin Qinhe to let him help take care of her son this Sunday, so that she and her husband could go to an important meeting, but Lin Qinhe just broke the appointment with her. Not long after Lin Zeqiu came back from the provincial government, he smiled after hearing the words: Qinhe and Zeshi have the same virtue, how can he tell stories to children. Tang Nan was sent away by his mother, and with his short legs, he ran to Lin Qinhe who was sitting on the sofa. He pulled Lin Qinhes pants and said, Uncle, my mother wants you to tell me a story. Lin Qinhe was reading a small comic. He picked Tang Nan up on his lap with one hand, and asked casually, What do you want to hear? Tang Nan was attracted by the comic in Lin Qinhes hand, and reached out to catch it, but Lin Qinhe folded it. Tang Nan pressed his mouth. He grabbed the clothes on Lin Qinhes chest and said coquettishly, Uncle, I want to see this. The entire Lin family couldnt do anything when he acted coquettish. No. Lin Qinhe refused directly. Why? Because this is mine. Lin Weiliang, who was reading the newspaper on the sidelines, couldnt stand it anymore. He glared at Lin Qinhe and waved to his beloved great-grandson: Nan nan, grandpa is here, grandpa will tell you a story. Tang Nan jumped off Lin Qinhes leg and ran to Lin Weiliangs leg to give a little report: Uncle is so stingy. Yes, its too stingy! Lin Weiliang scolded together, telling Tang Nan the story of the Red Army crossing the grassland2. Tang Nan fell asleep as he listened. After a while, Lin Zeshi finally rushed to the old house and as soon as he entered the living room, he was scolded by his father: Your brother is not even as busy as you at the provincial party committee, you might as well eat at the company! Lin Zeshi lowered his head and was scolded honestly. The family finished their dinner silently, except for Tang Nans whose mouth was covered by Lin Jiaxuan, talked from time to time. After the meal, Lin Zeshi was lectured by Lin Weiliang again. Are you planning to live apart like this for the rest of your life with Luo Zhengyin? Or just divorce. Its not like I would disagree and Qinhe will definitely not object. Lin Weiliang said to Lin Zeshi after the nagging. He had countless glories in his life, and both of his sons are dragons and phoenixes, but the only thing he regretted most was the marriage of his younger son Lin Zeshi. At the beginning, he arranged a marriage to let Lin Zeshi marry Luo Zhengyin, the daughter of his family friend Luo Zhongyun. It took a long time to realize that the two people had agreed so readily and they had already conspired to get married. The husband and wife did not disturb each others private life, and even their only son, Lin Qinhe, was a test-tube baby because of the pressure of both parents. The two had been separated for more than ten years, but the strange thing was that Lin Weiliang had not seen any lover of Lin Zeshi, and his private life was completely clean, only working. Lin Zeshi said to Lin Weiliang without hesitation: If she doesnt ask for divorce, I wont get divorced. Lin Weiliang sighed: This is your business anyway. You two may be worthy of yourself, but you must be sorry for the kid Qinhe. Lin Zeshi was silent upon hearing this. When Luo Zhengyin suffered from depression after giving birth, Fang Suis death aggravated the condition. Fearing that she would be stimulated, Lin Zeshi had not dared to let Luo Zhengyin touch his son for five years after that. Lin Qinhe had been raised in his brother Lin Zeqius home. It wasnt until the Fang familys child named Yang Duole called Luo Zhengyin mother that Luo Zhengyin gradually got out of depression, took Lin Qinhe back, and let the two children grow up together. But the intimacy between mother and child had never been cultivated, and there was always a layer of politeness and unfamiliarity, far from the intimacy between Luo Zhengyin and Yang Duole. Lin Zeshi walked out of the study and found his son, whom he hadnt seen for a long time. The father and son went to the courtyard outside the old house and chatted under the pavilion. After an autumn rain, the night sky was clear, and a bright moon hung at the corner of the pavilion. How is your mother? I heard that she caught a cold last week? Lin Zeshi asked. He looked at his son and found that he was almost as tall as himself. Lin Qinhe said, Already well. He paused, If you care about her, you can go and see her directly. Lin Zeshi took out a cigarette, thought about it, put it back, and sighed: Forget it, theres no point. I saw her at the charity exhibition for Fang Sui last month. She looked very good. Luo Zhengyin might not discover in this life that the husband who had agreed to marry her fell in love with her long time ago, but Lin Zeshi knew from the beginning that Luo Zhengyin had only one woman who had been away for many years in her heart. Lin Qinhe said nothing. Lin Zeshi knew that Lin Qinhe did not like to mention the dead woman, and began to care about his sons university: Have you thought about which school in the United States to apply for? It hasnt been determined yet. I may go to some interviews at the end of the year. Lin Qinhe said flatly. Lin Zeshi stopped worrying. In other words, he had nothing to worry about his son since he was a child, and he rarely asked him for anything. He turned to ask: Last time I forgot to ask you, why did you sponsor the first place in Qingshui County to come to your school? I did it for your mother. What did you do for? I thought you wouldnt be interested in these things. His assistant Su Yun had been following up the Qingshui County remote teaching project. At that time, it was decided to sponsor the live broadcast equipment of the countys high schools in Qingshui County, but there was no plan to sponsor the first place to study in Wenhua No. 1 High School. After he learned about it from Su Yun, he was surprised for a while. Today he also learned that this project for Qingshui Countys first place project had changed, and the funding for the project had always come from Lin Qinhe himself. He was really curious, why did this indifferent son like him do this. For what? Lin Qinhe looked at the bright moon hanging outside the pavilion. In fact, he never believed that there would really be people in this world who would be willing to run to another person regardless of everything. But he knew that someone saw him as the moon in the sky and could run towards him, running over the mountains and seas for him. He had never been expected to do well, because he could always do well, and and he never expected anyone to do anything for him, even his parents, because he didnt like to owe anyone anything. He took all the relationships in the world, including parental affection, with indifference. But when he couldnt help but open the letters that span thousands of kilometers, watching those clumsy handwritings carefully disguised as girls, like a fire, the stars burned hot and innocently yearning for him. As if he was the only one in the world. As if it could burn all for him. He didnt know what made him endure these swarms of letters, let alone when it started. From the initial boredom, to the habit, to the expectation that he had never had before. He suddenly wanted to know that if he dropped a rope that was insignificant to him into the deep well, would the fool who thought of him as a light and walked out of the night, vowed to go to him, thought he was clever but was exposed early, grab the rope he gave and try to walk to his side? Qiao Yitang teased that he was playing a nurturing game, but only he knew it was not. He was not doing charity, neither was it a game. What was his original intention? Lin Zeshi saw his son staring at the moon in a daze, and asked again in the night breeze: Could it be that you are also doing it for your mother? Lin Qinhe returned to his senses, smiled lightly, his eyes seemed to be softened by the moonlight. He slowly replied: No, its just watching a person walk very hard at night, I cant help but want to illuminate him. He just wanted the person who rushed to him so hard to have a better, less hard life as he wished. This was easy for him. This was just his original intention. _________________________ The author has something to say: Xiaolin is the sponsor of Xiaotao ׸ C to carry favour/social climbing C the same meaning The long march of CPC, happened in 1934-35 CH 26 In a shanty town on the outskirts of Wenhua City, Tao Jian had just finished arguing with the landlord who was urging the rent. He had been renting this house of less than 10 square meters these days. He went out to look for work during the day, but had not been able to find one. There were many foreign rural people like him who come to work in Wenhua City, but he did not have any advantage to compete with those migrant workers in their young and strong years. Without academic qualifications and skills that could be used, he was destined to struggle only at the bottom of the city. There were only two or three hundred yuan left in Tao Jians hand. He squatted at the door, fumbled out the last cigarette, lit it and took a big puff. He wondered if he still had to go to Tao Xi, this time he had to get money no matter what. With a cigarette in his hand, Tao Jian got up from the bumpy ground and was about to rush to Wenhua No. 1 High School when he saw a young woman in a white skirt approaching. She wore delicate makeup, neat short hair, and a pair of stiletto, as if walking out of the most expensive office building in the city center, her whole body was incompatible with this place. Tao Jian looked at it a few times, feeling a little strange. When he was going to pass by, the woman stopped and asked him, Are you Mr. Tao Jian? Tao Jian was stunned, then subconsciously nodded. Hello, Im Su Yun, assistant to the chairman of Ruize Group. Su Yun showed a formulaic smile, Can I find another place to talk to you in detail? The next thing was far beyond Tao Jians imagination. He was taken into a coffee shop he had never entered before by this woman named Su Yun. After two cups of coffee that worth his meal for several days came up, Su Yun directly explained her intentions: Im here this time mainly to solve work problems for Mr. Tao. She took out a document from her briefcase and put it in front of Tao Jian, This is a security post for a property subsidiary of Ruize Group. It provides board and lodging. Today you can directly start. Tao Jian looked at the job description on this document with disbelief. He had never encountered a salary like that after working for so many years. But there was no good thing in the world. He looked at Su Yun suspiciously and asked: I dont know the chairman of your group, why should he offer me a job? There must be some conditions? He had just been scammed of money by the so-called fellow, and he remained wary of everything, but he didnt figure out what else could be scammed from him, he was almost penniless. Su Yun took a sip of coffee and slowly said, Of course there are conditions. The condition is that you cant disturb your son Tao Xi for a minute and even a second before he graduates from high school. Tao Jians eyes widened suddenly. He had already smelled the weirdness of this incident, and said in a huff: Laozi is his father. It is only right to find my son. You are an outsider. Why do you care about other peoples father and son affairs? Su Yun chuckled lightly, and replied slowly: As my young master is his sponsor, everything during his studies in Wenhua No. 1High School is under the control of my young master. Tao Jians complexion turned pale, he suppressed his anger and said in a deep voice, What are you trying to do with my son?! I tell you, even if I dont have a penny, I will never allow you rich people to do anything dirty to my son! He had been wandering and working outside these years, so he had heard of the special habits of the upper class. He asked why Tao Xi was suddenly sponsored to study at Wenhua No. 1 High School. It turned out that someone had ulterior motives for Tao Xi. Su Yun frowned, and disgust appeared in her eyes. It was obvious that Tao Jians malicious speculation had offended her. She sneered: My young master is about the same age as your son. What can you do to support your son? Its a shame that you, as Tao Xis father, have to rely on your son for support. Although she didnt understand why her young master was so concerned about the poor student from another place, she would never allow anyone to slander him. Tao Jian was so angry that he almost lifted the table, but he finally endured it. This woman was right. He had to rely on his son to support him, and he was indeed a scumbag. But Im his father, cant I just go to school and just take a simple look at my son? Tao Jian took a step back and asked with raised eyebrows. Su Yun said calmly: I dont think your simple look is a good thing for high school students who need to concentrate on their studies. Not long ago, the young master of her family gave her a monitoring video at the entrance of Wenhua No. 1 High School and asked her to check. This father obviously did not have enough quality, there was no care or love for his son. She paused and said seriously: Your son will be admitted to a good university and have a life completely different from yours. If you really want to be good for him, not disturbing him is the most useful thing you can do. Tao Jian was silent for a long time. He finally agreed to this condition and signed the contract that Su Yun took out. Before Su Yun left, he said coldly: Remember to abide by the regulations. Besides, you cant tell Tao Xi about this. Tao Jian waved his hand irritably. Tao Xi soon received the money from the school and gave most of the money to Guo Ping for Tao Les medicine, and the remaining part was not only the living expenses, but also the money intended to be given to Tao Jian. He wanted to wait for him to become an adult, except for Tao Le, he would no longer care about these two people. But Tao Jian never came to him. He thought that maybe Tao Jian finally found a job and he didnt need to ask him for money. Tao Xi didnt take this matter to heart anymore. He had one more important thing, and that was to invite Lin Qinhe to dinner on Sunday. He had searched for a long time these days, and initially selected five restaurants near the downtown business district. You look at this seafood restaurant in this AAode Square? I heard from my roommate that its delicious. Tao Xi approached Lin Qinhe during class and showed him his cell phone. On the phone was a restaurant in a review app. In fact, he had never eaten seafood himself and would like to try it. Lin Qinhe said: I dont eat seafood. He was allergic to seafood. Okay, then Ill change to another restaurant. Tao Xi didnt notice that he was a little too close to Lin Qinhe. He just leaned close to Lin Qinhe, lowered his head and flipped through his favorite restaurant on his mobile phone. Lin Qinhe looked down. and he could clearly see Tao Xis white and slender back of the neck, which extends downward because of the thin and slightly raised spine. Further down, it was hidden by the neckline of the white shirt, and only the faint peach-scented shower gel could be smelled. How about this hot pot restaurant? I think the rating is quite high. Tao Xi raised his head and asked Lin Qinhe, blinking. I dont eat spicy food. Lin Qinhe said flatly. Okay. Tao Xi lowered his head and flipped the phone again. How about this Southeast Asian restaurant? I see the environment in the picture is pretty good. Tao Xi asked, looking up. Too far. Tao Xi had to look down at other restaurants again, but he had asked all five restaurants in turn, Lin Qinhe always had reason to say no, he could only look down and search again and again. Tao Xi thought that rich people were too difficult to serve. Finally he couldnt help asking directly: Then what do you like to eat? Lin Qinhe retracted his gaze and said, Whatever, Im okay with anything. ??? Tao Xi stared at Lin Qinhe. Can you really eat whatever? He became a little angry. He squinted his eyes, slumped down and got closer to Lin Qinhe, he stared at Lin Qinhes eyes as he asked: Lin Qinhe, are you teasing me again? Lin Qinhe looked down into his eyes and with a nonchalant tone he said: Yes. Tao Xi didnt expect this person to admit it. He didnt find a good expression for a while, and slightly opened his ruddy lips, staring at Lin Qinhe blankly, forgetting how to fight back. But the next second he felt that his neck was pinched neither lightly nor heavily by one hand, and he moved back. He subconsciously shrank his body, like a cat whose neck was bitten and raised, and was lifted to the side. What are you doing?! Tao Xi couldnt help but tremble, and hurriedly covered the back of his neck with his hand, his eyes rounded. He never knew that his back neck was so sensitive. The place where Lin Qinhes fingers touched seemed to have an electric current rushing down his spine, even his heart couldnt help but tremble. He put on an angry face, attempting to hide his reddened face and ears. You are too close to me. Lin Qinhe said lightly, twisting the thumb and index finger that had been retracted. Tao Xi suddenly felt that his heart was about to jump out. He slapped the table in a panic, saying loudly, all bark no bite1: I dont care. At 6:30 on Sunday night, you must come to the Guangdong-Hong Kong tea restaurant in Aode Square! Lin Qinhe lifted the corners of his lips slightly and said, Okay. ǿи (wi qing zhng gn): strong in appearance but weak in reality CH 27 Before the club activities on Sunday, Tao Xi worriedly reminded Lin Qinhe: At 6:30 tonight, Aode Square, Guangdong-Hong Kong Tea Restaurant, you must not let me wait! Otherwise I Lin Qinhe took out the music score and looked at him: Or else what will you do? Tao Xi choked. What could he do? He would be disappointed, but he would still like this person so much. So he hummed and said to Lin Qinhe: Not much, maybe I will ignore you tomorrow. After a pause, he added a little in a useless whisper, Just one day. Tao Xi heard Lin Qinhe laugh in a low voice. Before he could see Lin Qinhes smile clearly, Lin Qinhe left the classroom with the music score. Tao Xi sat in a daze for a while before getting up and heading to the art club. Before he started painting, Qiao Yitang found him and said, Tao Xi, I showed my grandfather your painting last time. He wants to see you. Are you free this afternoon? Tao Xi was taken aback and looked at Qiao Yitang blankly. Qiao Yitang smiled and said, Oh, by the way, you probably dont know who my grandfather is. My grandfathers name is Qiao Henian. You should have heard of it, right? Tao Xis heart trembled. It was impossible for him to not know Qiao Henian, this old painter was a famous domestic oil painting master, once the director of the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He didnt expect Qiao Yitang to be Qiao Henians granddaughter, let alone Qiao Henian would want to see him. He was naturally excited to see Qiao Henian, but not today. He said to Qiao Yitang: I want to see Mr. Qiao very much, but I have an appointment for dinner tonight. Can I visit Mr. Qiao next week? Qiao Yitangs eyes lit up and she asked in a gossiping tone: Are you going on a date at night? That should be prepared well! Its okay, my grandpa has nothing to do, just playing chess and teasing birds at home everyday. No problem, see you next week. Tao Xi knew that Qiao Yitang had misunderstood, but the word date made him feel sweet. He didnt refute, his eyes were shining, and the corners of his mouth couldnt suppress a smile, he said thank you. Qiao Yitang looked at the innocent look of the boy in front of her, feeling very similar to the white milk cat she had raised before. She had some itchy hands and wanted to stroke Tao Xis hair, but after thinking about it, she held it back, and said leisurely: Dress up well and have fun on your date! Tao Xi nodded happily and said thank you again. Qiao Yitang turned around and walked out of the studio. She walked to the corner of the corridor before taking out her mobile phone and made a call. As soon as the call was connected, she rattled: You owe me a big favor again! I helped him connect with my grandfather, ah. But after seeing his paintings, my grandfather was really interested in him. Maybe he will accept a disciple in the future. You must know that my grandfather now doesnt accept students except me. I really dont understand you. At first I thought you wanted to be in politics like your grandfather and uncle, so you support the countrys targeted poverty alleviation policy. But you are not helping the poor anymore, you are raising a child and daughters-in-law, ba! But hes going on a date happily tonight. You dont just raise it but in the end, you got nothing at all! When the opposite party hung up the phone without saying anything, Qiao Yitang looked at the phone screen angrily, wishing that this stuffy jar1 who didnt say anything, would not own a thing in the world. After Tao Xi finished painting, he rushed back to the dormitory, picking and choosing clothes from his closet for half a day, but he couldnt pick out any suitable clothes. He didnt have any clothes at all. Since coming to Wenhua No. 1 High School, he hadnt bought a new dress because he wore a school uniform every day. I still have to buy a set of clothes, he thought. Tao Xi left school and went to the mall. Seeing that Tao Xi was good-looking, the salesperson asked him to try and change clothes. The clothes were really good and he was pressed to take a bunch of photos like a model, but when he saw that the price was over a thousand, he immediately withered. Although the school gave a lot of money, he would never waste it on such expensive clothes. Tao Xi finally found a relatively cheap underground shopping mall, and spent 300 yuan on a set of clothes that were on sale for the season last year, a beige knitted sweater, with two fluffy and soft braided strings hanging in front of it, and light-colored jeans lined a pair of legs that were long and slender. He didnt think this was handsome enough, but the salesperson was hyping it so much2 that he was stunned. After buying new clothes, Tao Xi squatted by the bench in the rest area of ??the shopping mall, fished out the papers from his school bag, and plopped down on the bench to do his homework. The middle-aged uncle who was sitting by the side waiting for his wife to shop sighed: Child, it is tiring to squat here. There is a coffee shop, it is more comfortable to go there to do homework. Tao Xi shook his head: The coffee shop is too expensive. He paused and looked at the uncle and said seriously, And Im not a kid anymore, Im in my second year of high school. The uncle smiled: You look a lot like a middle school student. Besides, the second year of high school is also very young, not an adult yet. Tao Xi frowned and thought, this outfit was still not handsome enough. The uncle sighed with emotion and said to himself: If my kid is so obedient and sensible, I will definitely live to ninety-nine in one breath. Tao Xi did his homework until half past five. He stood up with numb legs and almost fell. He moved his legs on the spot for a while, packed his backpack and rushed to the place. The rush hour in big cities was always overcrowded. After the autumnal equinox, the sun set earlier and earlier, and the twilight was gradually engulfed by the night. Tao Xi stood in front of the crowded Aode Mall, looking down at the WeChat chat box on his phone in a daze. Should he ask where Lin Qinhe was? But now that it was not even six oclock yet, would Lin Qinhe be annoyed to be urged? Tao Xi took out an English vocabulary booklet from his school bag. Standing in the crowd of people memorizing words, a lot of people passing by looked surprised. But he couldnt memorize it at all. The letters were grouped together in front of him, and then spread out in his mind, and finally they became the three words Lin Qinhe. A college boy standing waiting for his girlfriend couldnt help but say to Tao Xi: Are you also waiting for your girlfriend for a date? If she sees you on a date and is still studying, she will be angry. Tao Xi was startled, and asked in surprise, Will really be angry? But if he didnt study hard, Lin Qinhe would also be angry. Of course, ah. It means you didnt worry about her all the time. The college boy seemed to be very experienced. As soon as he finished his speech, he saw his girlfriend walk over so he hurriedly smiled and gave a hug, and the two went into the mall holding hands. Tao Xi hurriedly put the vocabulary booklet back into his school bag, and stared at WeChat on the phone again in a daze. It was already six oclock, should it be okay to ask? Tao Xi plucked up the courage to start typing on the phone: Where are you Just halfway through the text, the interface suddenly turned into an incoming call reminder. It was Lin Qinhes call. At that moment Tao Xi felt his stomach cramp. It was a surge of tension and excitement at the same time, his fingers panicked and picked up the phone, holding it hard and asking. Where are you? Im right now at the entrance of Aode Mall, next to the lamp post on the left. When he made a sound, he realized that his voice was trembling with excitement, and his throat seemed to be blocked by a ball of wet cotton. There seemed to be a bit noisy on the phone, but Lin Qinhes deep voice was still clear: Tao Xi, sorry, I cant come over tonight. He paused and continued, Sorry, something happened at home suddenly. Tao Xis heart sank quickly in the first half of the sentence, but immediately raised it in the second half. He asked anxiously: Whats the matter? Is it important? Lin Qinhe said: Yang Duole is sick. My family and I are on the way to take him to the hospital. Tao Xi finally heard clearly. The noisy background sound was the sound of intermittent sobbing, and the old grandmothers warm voice was soothing: Dont cry, dear grandson, were going to the hospital soon. The voice cried out again, Qinhe ge, and then came Lin Qinhes voice after the phone was taken away from him: Lele, bear with it, it wont hurt anymore after seeing the doctor. Tao Xi suddenly found that he couldnt find the air to breathe. He felt his heart hurt so much, so much. It hurt too much. It hurt so much that his vision began to blur. The voice on the other end of the phone sounded close again, Lin Qinhes voice was very low and soft: Sorry, I will invite you to dinner next time. You can eat whatever you want, okay? Tao Xi squeezed his palm with his fingers. He blinked his eyes hard, but the neon lights of the tall buildings rising from the ground and the endless stream of car tail lights were still blurred into gorgeous patches in front of his eyes. He murmured: But, but He was stubbornly reluctant to agree, but could not give a reason. Lin Qinhe asked him patiently, But what? Tao Xi closed his eyes and said in a stagnant voice But I want to see you. There is no reason, I just want to see you. Very much, very much, very much. These words seemed to have consumed all his courage, Tao Xi closed his eyes tightly, as if he could not hear all the voices in the world. There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone. It was only three seconds, but it also seemed like it was a long time. He heard Lin Qinhe say to him in the sound of his own effort to suppress his inhalation: You stand there obediently and dont move, Ill send someone to pick you up, okay? The voice was gentle like the evening breeze in October, and it gave him the illusion that Lin Qinhe was coaxing him, just like him coaxing Yang Duole. Tao Xi breathed, he said, Okay. After speaking, he realized that he could not make a sound at all. He took a deep breath, and his astringent throat only made a sound again: Okay. After hanging up the phone, Tao Xi reached out and touched his wet face. He held the phone and stared blankly at the bustling crowd. White-collar workers coming home from work, couples holding hands on dates, friends shopping together, parents with children Everyone was playing their part in the lively neon night, but what role was he playing tonight? Tao Xi didnt have to wait long, a black car he didnt recognize but was frequently gawking at pulled up not far away. The young man in a suit got out of the car and soon found him at the entrance of the mall and asked: Hello, you are Tao Xi, arent you? Im Chen Ting, the driver of the Lin family. Tao Xi nodded, and followed Chen Ting into the car. Soon he was sent to Hannan Hospital, and Chen Ting led him into the hospital. Tao Xi began to regret the moment he entered the elevator of the hospital. Why did he come here? Yang Duole was ill, what was he doing with a sullen expression? See? Visit? Concern? Acting as one of the many caring family members and friends surrounding Yang Duole? He could only find himself unhappy. There were a lot of people in the elevator, and there was a pungent smell of disinfectant. Tao Xi was squeezed in the corner with his backpack. An old man with a lunchbox next to him looked at the corner. The child seemed to be covered in dark shadows, so obviously sad that he thought he was sad about a sick relative, and asked him kindly. Do you come to visit your family after school? Tao Xi shook his head silently. He just wanted to see Lin Qinhe. Just a glance, and leave after seeing him. He said to himself. When the elevator reached the fifth floor, it opened again, and Chen Ting said softly to him: Here. Many people in the elevator started to walk outside. Tao Xi followed the others and was the last to get out of the elevator. The crowd dispersed and his vision became wider. He saw Lin Qinhe standing not far from the elevator entrance, looking at him. Suddenly Tao Xi couldnt walk anymore, standing still looking at Lin Qinhe, the elevator door behind him closed again with a ding. He thought, this glance was enough. He should go back after saying a word. Lin Qinhe walked up to him. As he took the backpack in his arms and carried it in his hand, he asked him in a low voice: Hungry? Do you want to eat something first? Tao Xi didnt speak, but just looked at Lin Qinhe. The long eyelashes were clearly illuminated by the overhead light, and there was only this person in his pupils. It seemed that there was only this one person in the world. Lin Qinhe looked down at those wet eyes for a while, then suddenly raised his hand to touch Tao Xis soft hair. But his fingers paused before he touched the hair and turned to twist the woven string of Tao Xis sweater that was thrown behind him and gently put it on his chest, moving gently like pinning a rose on his chest. He withdrew his hand, and the fingers hanging down the side of his leg curled up slightly. But Tao Xi grabbed the soft braided string and held it hard into his palm, he looked at Lin Qinhe and suddenly said. Lin Qinhe, Im so hungry. He thought. One glance seemed not enough. It was not enough. Stuffy jar silent and dislike of words. 컨׹ (a deluge of heavenly flowers) wild boast about sth; to speak beautiful but not practical or deceitful; describes that the speech is vivid and colorful, and extremely pleasant to the ears (many means exaggerated and not realistic) CH 28 What do you want to eat? Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xis fingers holding the braided string and asked softly. Tao Xi still looked at Lin Qinhe and said, Im fine with anything. Lin Qinhe looked at Chen Ting on the side, and Chen Ting asked clearly, Ill go down to buy food, do you and Madam need it? Lin Qinhe said: No, just buy him one. Chen Ting nodded and left. When Lin Qinhe saw Tao Xi still looking at himself, he bent down slightly, looked at Tao Xis eyes with a level gaze and asked in a low voice, Whats wrong? Hungry and silly? Tao Xi lowered his eyelashes and shook his head. Lin Qinhe stood upright as his mobile phone rang, it was Luo Zhengyins call. He asked Tao Xi before picking up the phone, Do you want to come over with me? Tao Xi bit his inner lip and nodded silently. He followed behind Lin Qinhe, who answered the phone and said, Ill be there right over. The two of them walked in the direction of the ward and halfway they ran into Luo Zhengyin who was coming to look for Lin Qinhe. Luo Zhengyin looked anxious, she didnt have time to see the person who suddenly appeared behind Lin Qinhe, and said to Lin Qinhe: The doctor is about to intubate Lele. Lele has been crying without cooperating. Grandpa and grandma couldnt persuade him no matter what. Go and persuade him. In the afternoon, Luo Zhengyin and Lin Qinhe went to visit Yang Duoles grandparents. Yang Duole couldnt resist playing volleyball with some neighbor children, and suddenly had another pneumothorax attack in the evening. Lin Qinhe, who was about to go out, had to send Yang Duole to the hospital with them. Lin Qinhe frowned upon hearing this. Only then did Luo Zhengyin notice the boy following behind Lin Qinhe. The boy raised his head and looked at her. She was slightly stunned when she saw those eyes, and her fast pace also stopped. Lin Qinhe introduced Tao Xi to her: His name is Tao Xi, he is my tablemate. Tao Xi looked at the tall and short-haired woman in front of him, guessing that she should be Lin Qinhes mother, so he obediently said, Hello, Auntie. Luo Zhengyin returned to her senses and showed a haggard smile: Hello, I heard Qinhe and Lele talked about you, thank you for coming to see Lele. She thought Tao Xi was here to visit Yang Duole, but she also felt a little strange. In her impression, Yang Duole didnt like this classmate Tao Xi. Tao Xi didnt know what to say, but then Lin Qinhe said to Luo Zhengyin: Go to the ward first, ba. Before the three of them got to the ward, they heard the sound of Yang Duoles crying and a pair of old peoples bitter and comforting voices from the ward. Tao Xis footsteps were getting heavier and heavier, he knew that the old couple should be his grandparents. Luo Zhengyin was anxious and went into the ward first. Tao Xi gently tugged on Lin Qinhes sleeve before he reached the door of the ward. Lin Qinhe looked at him and seemed to understand what he meant. He led Tao Xi to the bench in the corridor and said softly. You sit here and wait for me, okay? Tao Xi sat down on the bench and pretended to be calm and said okay. He was the one who wanted to come, he had no right to be sad. But he didnt know that sadness and liking were the same, they couldnt be hidden. Lin Qinhe looked down at Tao Xi, and from this angle he could see his drooping and trembling eyelashes. He took out a candy from his pocket. It was given by the neighbors kid when he was at Fangs in the afternoon. Squatting down, he held Tao Xis hand and put the candy with the smiley face in his palm, saying: I heard that all children will become happy after eating this candy. This was what the little girl who gave the candy told him. Tao Xi looked at the candy in the palm of his hand, then looked at Lin Qinhe. He raised the corner of his mouth and smiled, saying: But Im not a kid anymore. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis eyes, he was silent for a moment and said in a voice Tao Xi could not hear: You are. Then he stood up and walked into the ward after Luo Zhengyin came out and urged him. Tao Xi looked at the candy and squeezed it into his palm. He thought, what could he be sad about? He had a healthy body that Yang Duole did not have, he would earn a lot of money in the future, he would buy a very big house, he would go to many places in the world, and he would have a very good life. His good life was only missing one Lin Qinhe. But he still couldnt help but quietly walk to the door of the ward and look inside in the dim light on the other side of the door to see what the person who should have belonged to him looked like. Luo Zhengyin apologized to the doctors and nurses, then walked to Yang Duoles grandmother, Ye Yurong, who was wiping her tears, and handed her a tissue. Grandpa Fang Zuqing, who was sitting on a chair, was silent and had red eyes. This old professor who had been strong for most of his life only loved this grandson, that no matter how capricious he was, he had never said any heavy words to him. Tao Xi quietly looked at the two old persons with tears and red eyes. He thought, it turned out that this was his maternal grandparents. It turned out that when relatives feel sorry for a child, they would feel so painful that they cry for him. Then he saw Lin Qinhe walk to Yang Duoles bed and asked him: Why dont you cooperate with the doctor? The voice was serious, but tender. Yang Duoles face was pale, and his face was full of tears. He had undergone this operation before and knew how painful it was, but he had never dared to disobey Lin Qinhe. He desperately said: Qinhe ge, I feel so painful, I feel like I cant live anymore, its so painful to live like this. Luo Zhengyin looked at him slightly when she heard the words. With red eyes, Ye Yurong crouched down and wept, and Fang Zuqing held his wife in his arms. Lin Qinhes voice deepened: Lele, dont say such things, dont make your loved ones feel sorry for you. Yang Duole flattened his mouth angrily and did not speak, only tears dripping from the corners of his eyes. Lin Qinhe gently held Yang Duoles right hand. There was an obvious red round birthmark on the wrist of that hand, and a red peace knot with gold beads. When Yang Duole didnt want to take medicine when he was a child, Lin Qinhe would hold his hand to persuade him like this. And that string of red peace knots was the last gift Fang Sui left for Yang Duole. Lin Qinhe softened his voice and slowly said to Yang Duole: Remember the letter for the eighteen-year-old you that your mother gave you? I think she hoped that when you open the letter, you have grown into a strong and optimistic adult. Luo Zhengyin couldnt hold back any more, and she shed tears. Yang Duole was silent. He could be willful in front of all his relatives, but he couldnt be willful to his mother because she had sacrificed her life for him. He finally agreed to cooperate with the doctor. After that, the doctor and nurse intubated Yang Duole with the medical devices and Yang Duole cried out in pain. Lin Qinhe held his hand all the time, and Luo Zhengyin wiped her tears from the side. Tao Xi left the wards door, returned to the bench and sat down. He tore the candy paper from his hand that had been held warm, stuffed it into his mouth, and chewed it hard. It had a very sweet peach flavor, but he could not taste anything. He thought, Lin Qinhe could also be wrong. He didnt feel happy at all after eating this candy. Not at all. He quickly ate the candy. Chen Ting walked up to him with a box of lunch and said, I bought this at a nearby restaurant. I dont know if you like it or not. Thanking him, Tao Xi took the lunch. He opened the lunch box, buried his head and ate, eating faster and faster, gorging on the food like someone who had been starving for days. Only in this way could he control himself from breaking into that ward and loudly said to them: I am Fang Suis son. You should all love me. I am also very uncomfortable, my heart hurts, and Im living in pain. Why dont you care about me? How come no one has ever shed tears because of heartache for me? After eating, he felt a little nausea. He took out a bottle of water from his pocket, tilted his head and took a few mouthfuls of water before the burst of vomiting was suppressed. Tao Xi put down the water bottle and saw a pair of long legs appear in front of him, and then the legs were bent. Lin Qinhe squatted in front of him, looking up at him. He rarely had the opportunity to look down at Lin Qinhe like this. The lights in the corridor fell on Lin Qinhes face, and the shadows under the brow bones seemed more profound, and the deep eyes looking at him were obviously worried. Lin Qinhe stretched out his hand to twist a grain of rice away from his mouth and asked him in a low voice, Tao Xi, whats wrong with you? Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe in a daze, like a drowning man looking at the only driftwood, and a person in the dark looking at the only light. He suddenly asked: Lin Qinhe, if one day I get sick and it hurts very much, will you come to see me? Lin Qinhe frowned slightly and asked, Why do you ask such a question? Tao Xi asked paranoidly: So will you come to see me? Lin Qinhe was silent for a while before saying: You wont get sick. The tone was determined and almost naive, as if he could be sure that he would be disease-free and disaster-free throughout his life, and he would have lots of blessings and happiness. Tao Xis heart was sour, he smiled and said, Lin Qinhe, I want to go back. Lin Qinhe stood up: I will send you back. Dont you need to stay here to accompany him? Tao Xi sat still and asked a question that was cruel to himself. Lin Qinhe said flatly: He has many relatives with him. He bent over to hold Tao Xis hand, pulled him up from the bench, and whispered: But you seem to only have me now. Tao Xi was suffocated, he almost shed tears. At that moment, he wanted to ask Lin Qinhe very much. Do you like me a little bit too? But in the end he didnt have the courage. He was afraid that it was just his own illusion. Once asked, there would be no room for maneuver. Lin Qinhe carried Tao Xis school bag and took Tao Xi into Lins car. Chen Ting drove the car to Wenhua No. 1 High School. In the car, Tao Xi looked at the neon lights flying quickly outside the window, and then at the silent Lin Qinhe beside him. Lin Qinhe noticed his gaze and turned to look at him under the dim light. The colorful neon lights reflected in his eyes, showing soft colors in the light and shadow. Tao Xi opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end he just said: It is too late to draw the comic for you today. Lin Qinhe replied to him, Its okay. After a pause, he said, Give it to me tomorrow. Tao Xi nodded and said nothing. He looked at the neon outside the window again, he thought. This road should be longer and longer. Long enough that Lin Qinhe would always have only him by his side. But after the evening rush hour, the city was no longer congested. The car quickly drove to the gate of Wenhua No. 1 High School and Tao Xi reluctantly followed Lin Qinhe getting out of the car. Lin Qinhe still carried Tao Xis school bag and sent him all the way to the dormitory building. The campus was silent on a Sunday night, with only the soft noise of the October evening breeze. Tao Xi stood at the door of the first floor of the dormitory, the only remaining light was very dim, and he always seemed to have more courage in the dimness. He said to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe, I am sad today, can I ask for midterm rewards in advance? Although he hadnt made it into the top fifty yet, nor could he absolutely guarantee that he would be in the top fifty. But Lin Qinhe seemed to be particularly indulging him tonight, he replied softly: Yes, what do you want? Tao Xi didnt answer. He threw himself on Lin Qinhe in the dark, slightly on tiptoe, wrapped his hands around Lin Qinhes neck and put his chin on Lin Qinhes broad shoulders, gently rubbing it like a puppy. Lin Qinhe froze, he subconsciously wanted to push the person away, but in the end he withdrew his hand. Tao Xis eyelashes quivered, and he whispered: Lin Qinhe, I will also strive to become a strong and optimistic adult. Just like what you said to Yang Duole. He quickly let go of Lin Qinhe, otherwise he was afraid that his heartbeat would be heard. Okay, I am not sad now, thank you. Tao Xi took his school bag from Lin Qinhe and ran quickly up to the dormitory building. Lin Qinhe stood motionless until the sensor lights in the corridor went out one by one. He walked towards the school gate. Later, Lin Qinhe would always remember that night, if the time was reversed, letting him go back to that time. He would definitely hug the person in his arms back hard. Told him. You dont need to be an adult. You only need to be my most favorite child in the world. _____________________________ T/N: definitely not the midterm rewards everyone was expecting :))) and definitely not the last chapter I cried while translating :))) CH 29 Tao Xi ran back to the empty bedroom on the fourth floor with the fastest speed. Before the lights could be turned on, he ran to the balcony to open the window and looked downstairs. On weekend nights, there were only a few street lights that were not even bright on the campus, but fortunately, the short road from the dormitory building to the school gate could barely be seen. Tao Xi panted slightly, standing on tiptoe and sticking his head out the window to look for Lin Qinhe, but after a while, he didnt see him. Did Lin Qinhe walk so fast? Tao Xi unwillingly waited for a while, and finally saw Lin Qinhes figure appear in the gloomy night lights. He didnt know why Lin Qinhe spent so long downstairs. He just looked at Lin Qinhes back as before, no, harder than before. This was his most accustomed and relaxed angle, so there was no need to worry about being discovered by Lin Qinhe. Just like when people looked up at the moon, they never worried about whether the moon cared about their gaze. But Tao Xi suddenly saw Lin Qinhe stop, then turned around and looked up at the dormitory building. At that moment, Tao Xis heart shrinked violently. Was Lin Qinhe looking at him? This guess made his hair tremble with excitement. He hurriedly raised his hand to Lin Qinhe and waved, but suddenly realized that he hadnt turned on the light yet so Lin Qinhe couldnt see him. Tao Xi hurriedly went to turn on the light on the balcony, but when he returned to the window, he saw Lin Qinhe had already turned around and continued to walk towards the school gate. A huge loss came over his face, followed by unwillingness that suddenly rose up. Tao Xi took out the phone from his pocket, unlocked it quickly with his fingers, searched for Lin Qinhes phone number, and pressed it in a hurry. He looked at Lin Qinhes figure nervously while waiting to be connected, and when he saw that he had stopped, he lowered his head as if he was looking at the phone. The call was connected. Lin Qinhe didnt speak, only the sound of very shallow breathing could be heard, he turned and looked up at the dormitory building. Tao Xi didnt know what to say, he called him on impulse. Tao Xi? Lin Qinhe whispered his name and looked up at him, as if he knew which room he was in. Tao Xi opened his mouth, looked at Lin Qinhe in the night, and plucked up the courage to say: Lin Qinhe, I want to say goodnight to you. I want to say good morning, good afternoon, and good night to you every day. Lin Qinhe seemed to laugh, and said to him: Say, ba. Tao Xi paused and said seriously: Lin Qinhe, good night. Tao Xi, good night. Lin Qinhe had a soft voice. This scene was actually a bit weird. One person was upstairs and the other was downstairs, looking at each other, not yet the time to sleep, but they said goodnight to each other on the phone. Tao Xi couldnt help but laugh, his eyes filled with shining stars again. It seemed that everything went really well tonight and he could sleep peacefully without any worries. Im done, see you tomorrow! Tao Xi hung up the phone as soon as he finished, afraid he wouldnt be able to hang up later. He watched Lin Qinhe put down his phone, turned around and walked towards the school gate again, until he couldnt see him at all before he returned to the room. After taking a shower as usual, he washed the clothes he changed out of and dried them on the balcony. Then he sat on the chair and started doing practice papers. There was a rare calm in his heart. It was as if he had gained endless courage in the hug and good night just now, even though it was just a one-sided hug. He found that whenever he was indulged in a ridiculous fate, Lin Qinhe would always pull him out of the dark river, so that he could see that the river was full of stars and dreams. Just thought of what he saw in the hospital at night as a dream. When he woke up from the dream, he still had to try to live a good life. When Lin Qinhe returned to Hannan Hospital, Yang Duole was already asleep, and the two old men were also persuaded by Luo Zhengyin to go back to rest. Only Luo Zhengyin was guarding the bed in the ward. Luo Zhengyin noticed that Lin Qinhe came in, and made a shushing gesture towards Lin Qinhe. She got up and checked the drainage bottle on Yang Duoles chest, and touched Yang Duoles forehead affectionately before walking out of the ward with Lin Qinhe. Where have you been? Lele has been looking for you. Luo Zhengyin closed the door and asked Lin Qinhe in the corridor. Lin Qinhe looked at Luo Zhengyins red eyes and said briefly: Send Tao Xi back to school. Only then did Luo Zhengyin remember that the student named Tao Xi had inexplicably come and left at night. She wondered in her heart and asked. Just ask Xiao Chen to send him back, why should you follow along? Lin Qinhe didnt answer her question and turned to say, You should also rest early, you have a concert performance tomorrow. Luo Zhengyin shook her head, raised her hand and rubbed her eyebrows. The sadness of the whole night made her really tired, and she couldnt help but confide in her son: I dont rest assured. Every time Lele gets sick, I always think of ASui. If I could stop her at that time regardless of everything, not letting her go nowhere, going so far away, would she have . Luo Zhengyin began to choke in the middle of speaking, and the nerves that collapsed all night finally relaxed. Lin Qinhe handed a tissue to his mother. He looked at the unmanned bench and said after a moment of silence, It has been a long time, and Aunt Fang definitely doesnt want you to feel guilty for her forever, she wont blame you. Luo Zhengyin wiped away the tears with a tissue. In fact, she rarely mentioned Fang Sui in front of Lin Qinhe. She knew that her son didnt like Fang Sui, but she didnt know why tonight, and she had been a little nervous and flustered, as if to foreshadow something that she had overlooked. Qinhe, mother knows that you must have no way to understand in your heart, and blame me for being unable to let go of the past. Maybe when you grow up and meet the most important person in your life, you will gradually understand how I feel, but I hope you will never be like mother, because cowardice and hesitation cause regrets in your life. Lin Qinhe didnt say a word. This was the first time his mother had been so honest with him about her feelings for Fang Sui. A long time ago, he had indeed blamed Luo Zhengyin and had developed a hint of hatred for the woman who had died. He had lived in the shadow of Fang Sui since he was a child. There were traces of her everywhere in the house, and even his own name cherished her memory. Luo Zhengyins extreme preference for Yang Duole was also unfair to him, but he, like his father, would not show most of his emotions. Everyone felt that he was born mature, alienated and indifferent to everything. But a long time ago, he also had expectations for his home, expecting his home to be as normal and joyful as an ordinary family, and expecting his parents to give him all the attention and love. Later, he gradually let go. After all, if it were not for Yang Duole, Luo Zhengyin might still be unable to get out of depression, then he would not even have a chance to see his mother. He could only hope that his relatives were well, and no longer asked for anything else. Lin Qinhe held Luo Zhengyins hand and said in a low voice, I didnt blame you, I just hope you can be happier. This is also my dads hope. Luo Zhengyin was slightly startled, she smiled and said: Speaking of which, I havent seen your dad for a long time, how is he? Lin Qinhe wanted to say something but stopped. In the end, he couldnt hold back and said: Hes fine, and hes always concerned about you. Luo Zhengyin was silent for a while. She was not completely ignorant of what Lin Zeshi did for her. She also took the initiative to ask Lin Zeshi for a divorce, but Lin Zeshi did not agree. After that, Lin Zeshi almost stopped showing up in front of her for fear of disturbing her. She did not continue the topic, instead she said, That classmate named Tao Xi is a bit like ASui. You seem to like this friend very much? Lin Qinhe frowned and said in a deep voice: He doesnt look like anyone. His tone was serious, but he didnt refute the second half of the sentence. Luo Zhengyin knew that he had lost his tongue, smiled and said. Since you like this friend, you will have the opportunity to invite him to play at home in the future. Lin Qinhe stretched his eyebrows and let out an en. Tao Xi didnt have a good night. He had a dream all night, dreaming that he was lying on a hospital bed with cold wires in his body. His grandparents wiped their tears and called him dear grandson, and Lin Qinhe held his hand as if to say something. He struggled for a long time in his dream and finally heard Lin Qinhe calling him Lele. Tao Xi woke up in shock, still in a trance with the pain of being filled with a tube. At that moment, he suddenly really wasnt jealous of Yang Duole. As the midterm exam was approaching, the atmosphere in the class became more and more tense. Even Bi Chengfei stopped playing basketball at noon and stayed in the classroom. Tao Xi knew that embracing the Buddhas feet was far better than holding Lin Qinhes thighs. Every day he went to Lin Qinhe to talk about various topics in a fancy way. He gradually realized that Lin Qinhe had been more and more indulgent towards him since he went to the hospital that day. At least Lin Qinhe would answer his questions every time, although the words were still pitiful. This allowed him to start to take advantage of the situation again.Under the quilt in the middle of the night, he even asked Lin Qinhe to solve the problem and Lin Qinhe was basically responsive, like an intelligent question bank AI. If Lin Qinhe didnt reply, he would send out the emojis he got from Bi Chengfei, one after another, cats, dogs, chickens, gooses, like the animal world. After sending twenty messages, Lin Qinhe finally replied to him with an ellipsis. Lin Qinhe: What about the question? Tao Xi: On the top Lin Qinhe: Too lazy to scroll Tao Xi posted the photo of the question again. It was a math problem, as difficult as Olympiad questions. He did it for twenty minutes and didnt manage to solve it. In less than three minutes, Lin Qinhe wrote the complete answering process and sent it over. Tao Xi sent a picture of a rooster jumping over. Lin Qinhe:? Tao Xi: Jumping sour chicken1 Lin Qinhe: As soon as the club activities ended on Sunday, Qiao Yitang took Tao Xi straight to his grandfather Qiao Henians house. The old man lived in an old red-roofed bungalow in the city center. The location was good but quiet. Out of courtesy, Tao Xi also spent a huge sum of money to buy a bunch of precious fruits that he had never eaten. Thinking about seeing Qiao Henian later, should he bow first to show respect. When he arrived at the Qiaos house, Qiao Henian was wearing an old gray sweater and stepping on rubber boots to grow vegetables in the garden. There was no such thing as a great painters immortality. Seeing the granddaughter and Tao Xi coming in, without looking up, he directly ordered: Not going to work! Qiao Yitang wore a short skirt and was extremely unhappy. She went to the toilet as an excuse. Tao Xi greeted Hello, Grandpa Qiao, and walked after putting down the fruit. He grew up doing farm work, so his actions were quick and smooth. It didnt take long to help Qiao Henian finish the work. Qiao Henian raised his waist with a hoe and looked at Tao Xi, his eyes were sharp, and Tao Xis palms were sweating from the stare. What is your name? Tao Xi, the stream Xi. Qiao Henian nodded and said, From now on, youll be a student of Qiao Henian. Tao Xi looked at Qiao Henian in shock. He couldnt believe that it was as simple as that. Qiao Henian walked into the bungalow with a hoe, and muttered all the way: Finally, Ive found someone to help me grow vegetables. Tao Xi did not expect that he had become a student of a great painter through his vegetable growing skills. Not coming?! Qiao Henian turned around and reminded him. Tao Xi followed Qiao Henian to the studio on the third floor. Why do you want to learn to paint? Qiao Henian took a few sips of water while sitting on the Huanghuali wood armchair, and finally asked a question that should be asked. Tao Xi thought for a while and said frankly: One is because I like it. The other is because I want to make money, make a lot of money. Lin Qinhe told him that his paintings should have a higher value and be appreciated by more people. His understanding was that his paintings must be sold for more money, so that they could buy a house and start a family. Qiao Henian squinted his eyes, nodded and smiled: Yes, honest enough, not pretending to be big and empty in front of the old man. I have seen your paintings, they have a bit of charm2 but its not enough to make a lot of money as you said. Come over during the holidays in the future. Help me with farming and I will teach you, how about it? Tao Xi nodded hurriedly and said respectfully, Thank you, teacher. Qiao Henian looked at Tao Xi again, and couldnt help saying, You really look like a female student of mine from many years ago. It is a pity that the child looked well-behaved, but her character was very stubborn, ruining her life and a promising future for a man who doesnt deserve it. He sighed, with regret in his eyes. His face became serious, and he asked Tao Xi sharply, Are you in love? Tao Xi was taken aback, shook his head hurriedly and said, Not yet. Qiao Henians face calmed down a bit, and he touched his beard and said: Yes, not like my good-for-nothing granddaughter who only knows how to fall in love all day long. Since you are my student, you have to listen to me. Puppy love is not allowed before graduating from high school, you know? Tao Xi was reluctant, and Qiao Henian glared at this hesitation. Understood, teacher. He reluctantly agreed, not understanding why the two of them cared so much about his puppy love. Tao Xi stayed in the studio in the afternoon and studied oil painting with Qiao Henian, and only once he learned it did he realize that his natural painting skills were nothing. It was already six oclock after the class. Tao Xi followed Qiao Henian from the third floor down to the living room on the first floor and saw two people sitting in the living room, one was Qiao Yitang who was eating the fruit he bought, and the other was actually Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi almost couldnt believe his eyes, standing in place and staring at Lin Qinhe in a daze. Qiao Henian saw Lin Qinhe at a glance and went over to him, smiling and joking: The Lin familys son has grown so tall. I told your grandfather several times to let you come over to play, but you didnt come. Why did you think of visiting this old man today? Lin Qinhe stood up and smiled at Qiao Henian before saying in a polite tone: Grandpa asked me to come over to give the invitation for the birthday banquet at the end of the month. As he said, he handed the invitation card on the coffee table to Qiao Henian. Tao Xi felt his heart like a hydrogen balloon instantly floating to the sky, he took a few steps to Lin Qinhes side, his eyes shining brightly at him. Lin Qinhe looked down at him and asked calmly: Why are you here? Qiao Yitang on the other side couldnt resist rolling a huge white eye at the ceiling. Qiao Henian closed the invitation and looked at Tao Xi. He found that as soon as his new apprentice saw Lin Qinhe, he was like a puppy that had strayed for a few days and finally saw its master. He smiled: This is my new student. Why? Are you classmates? Tao Xi couldnt help saying: Yes, hes even my tablemate! Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xi again, then raised his hand to check the time, and said to Qiao Henian: Its getting late. Grandpa Qiao, Im going back first, you must remember to go to the banquet. Qiao Henian waved his hand, Dont worry, even if I break my leg, I will go in a wheelchair. Qiao Yitang dragged his voice: Grandpa, have you forgotten about opening your mouth3? Qiao Henian laughed dismissively, and when he saw Lin Qinhe was about to leave, he kindly said to him: I wont keep you anymore. Look carefully to see if you have forgotten anything, dont drop things here. Im going out to play mahjong at night. Lin Qinhe said to Qiao Henian, I only brought an invitation card. He paused, with a smile on the corner of his mouth, he said: But now you can take one more person with you. Tao Xis eyes, which were already sparkling with stars and brightened, looked at Lin Qinhe. Pointing at himself, he asked in a low voice, Me? Qiao Yitang couldnt help but point out, Otherwise, can it be me? My boyfriend will come to pick me up soon. Lin Qinhe raised his eyelids at Qiao Yitang, and Qiao Henian stared at her furiously: What a disgrace! Youre talking about love at my doorstep! Look at your two xue di. They are all good-looking and dont fall in love every day like you. They study honestly and dutifully. When will you learn from others? Qiao Yitang raised her hand and surrendered: Okay, I was wrong. I was wrong. You two should leave quickly. Dont make my grandpa angry.4 Except for you whos disobedient, who else can make me angry?! Qiao Henian was furious, chasing Qiao Yitang and scolding her. Lin Qinhe reached out and gently pushed Tao Xis shoulder in the midst of the chaos, and whispered, Go, Ill send you back. Tao Xi stepped on cotton and followed Lin Qinhe out of Qiaos house. ____________________________________ The author has something to say: Xiao Tao started his career this is the meme: C literally means spiritual influence (of mountains etc), but seeing the example sentences, it can also mean charm or inspiring so Ill just go with charm To open the mouth is to say that everything is very effective. But this is just a habitual saying among the folks. It also embodies coincidence and peoples jokes ɱүүι C lit. dont poke my grandpa lung CH 30 Being picked up by parents after school was one of the things that Tao Xi yearned for the most since he was a child, especially when it rained suddenly and he did not bring an umbrella. He watched his classmates being picked up one by one by their parents, with a colorful umbrella holding up the chatter of children and the chatter of parents on one side. At first, he would wait to see if Guo Ping would come to pick him up, but after failing again and again, he stopped waiting and rushed into the rain with his head covered, running home along the muddy mountain road, changing clothes, washing clothes, and boiling hot water for the family to take a bath at night. After everything was done, he started to do his homework, and when he grew up he had to cook for himself. So when Tao Xi finished his painting and saw Lin Qinhe appear in the Qiao family living room, the joy that came over him was like a slice of dried lemon being thrown into warm sugar water, no matter how sour, the mood would bubble up sweetly. Although Lin Qinhe just happened to come here, and then picked him up on his way. In the evening, the magnificent twilight dyed the red roof of the bungalow into crimson. Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe all the way to the Lin family car and he recognized the driver as Chen Ting at a glance. Leaning on the back of the drivers seat, he tilted his head and smiled and greeted Chen Ting: Uncle Chen, good evening! If he was in a bad mood, he would beat up anyone he saw, but when he was in a good mood, he would be kind and pleasant to everyone. Chen Ting was stunned, his eyes flashed by the sweet smile, and he smiled politely, Hello, Im seeing you again. He was a little surprised. The last time he took Tao Xi to the hospital, he saw a pale and beautiful boy with gloomy eyes. He kept his head down and said nothing all the way. How could he be sobrilliant today? Lin Qinhe glanced at Chen Ting, his voice was a bit cold: Why didnt you greet someone just now? Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe in a daze, and subconsciously asked, Greet who? Lin Qinhe turned his face and glanced at him. The long, slightly drooping eyelashes tinged with the twilight outside the window, and his amber pupils deepened in color by a few points. Tao Xi thought about it. Lin Qinhe should have meant that he saw him in Qiaos living room just now but didnt greet him, but that was because he was so happy and silly at the time, just watching him in a daze. Unexpectedly, Lin Qinhe would care about this kind of etiquette. Tao Xi moved towards Lin Qinhe, twisted his head to look at Lin Qinhe and asked, Then how about I make up one for you? Lin Qinhe ignored him and only gave him a haughty and cold profile. Tao Xi pulled Lin Qinhes sleeve before Lin Qinhe looked at him and raised his eyebrows. Tao Xi bent his eyes, the thin upper and lower eyelashes intertwined. Like shouting Uncle Chen, good evening just now, he whispered: Qinhe gege, good evening. This was his careful thought, and it sounded closer than the Qinhe ge that Yang Duole shouted. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis eyes, his eyes flickered before he quickly turned his face to look out of the window and let out a cold hum. Tao Xi was a little disappointed by Lin Qinhes reaction. His eyes fell unconsciously on Lin Qinhes Adams apple and saw it roll up and down. Although Lin Qinhe looked indifferent, he was still excited. He began to pester Lin Qinhe about his painting lesson in the afternoon, saying how he worshipped a master by planting vegetables, how good Qiao Henian was, he was still far from being good, and so on. Lin Qinhe didnt say a word most of the time, just occasionally responded with a few words. But Tao Xi still enjoyed this, like a primary school student returning home from school, chatting about interesting things that happened in the school. When he finally stopped, Lin Qinhe looked at him and asked, Finished reporting? Tao Xi froze and saw that the corners of Lin Qinhes mouth lifted slightly, and under his eyes was a bright smile. He immediately understood that he was being laughed at. He tried to light two clusters of fire in his eyes and glared at Lin Qinhe and said, Im not speaking anymore. Lin Qinhe ignored the unintimidating anger in Tao Xis eyes, unscrewed a bottle of mineral water and handed it to him while saying lightly: If you havent finished speaking, you can tell me later at dinner. Tao Xi blankly accepted the water and drank a few mouthfuls, his brain stuck: What dinner? At this time the car stopped just in time, he looked out the window and suddenly realized that he was not sent to Wenhua No.1 High School at all, but to an underground parking lot that he didnt know where. Tao Xi was puzzled and asked Lin Qinhe, Where is this? Lin Qinhe took the water bottle from his hand, closed the lid, and said, Last time you invited me to dinner,I couldnt come. I said that I will invite you next time. After speaking, he pushed the door and got out of the car. Tao Xi was in a daze. He once again recalled the Sunday night spent at the hospital, as if a glass of wine mixed with all the unspeakable emotions, there were sour and bitter, but also very lightly sweet, like the sweetness after a bit of bitterness, indescribable. He did not expect Lin Qinhes words on the phone at that time to be true, and he really wanted to treat him to a meal. The door to the side of the car was opened. Lin Qinhe stood outside the car, bent down slightly and asked him, Dont want to eat? Tao Xi recovered, jumped out of the car and shook his head, Of course I want to eat. Seeing Chen Ting still in the car, he asked, Uncle Chen doesnt eat with us? Chen Ting was taken aback, and noticed Lin Qinhes gaze looking at him, so he hurriedly said politely: No, no, no, Ill go home to eat. He had been working as a driver for the Lin family for so many years, and his point of insight was still there. Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe out of the parking lot, only to find that this is a very large crab cuisine restaurant. The independent green wall courtyard was full of bamboo shadows and was very quiet and peaceful. It was very expensive at the first glance. Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe and said after a moment of hesitation: Actually, the restaurant where I planned to treat you last time cost less than 100 yuan per person. He found that every time he wanted to give something for Lin Qinhe, Lin Qinhe would end up giving back more. At that time he did not know that Lin Qinhe had done more than this for him. Lin Qinhe handed a card of some kind to the waiter who came to lead the way and asked, So? Tao Xi whispered: If you feel that you have lost, its not too late to regret it. Lin Qinhe led Tao Xi towards the private room and asked, Then its a loss now, how can you compensate for it? Tao Xi thought for a while and joked: I can go sell arts, sell a few paintings to the boss to cover the meal money, if not enough, I will have to sell my body. Lin Qinhe lifted the corner of his mouth and smiled. He casually whispered in a low voice: Then you might as well sell it to me. Tao Xi was stunned, not knowing whether Lin Qinhe was talking about selling his paintings or selling his body. He felt that his heartbeat was suddenly irregular, so he hurriedly shut his mouth to stop joking around. The waiter was followed in silence to a quiet private room with candles burning in the corner candlesticks, and a small bridge with flowing water outside the bamboo window. It was the first time Tao Xi came to such a place to eat, his hands and feet were a little nervous. After sitting down, Lin Qinhe handed him the menu and said, Order whatever you want. Tao Xi nodded nervously and opened the menu to take a look at the pictures and names of the dishes without remembering to read them, he was scared to death by the prices at the back. Even if you sell yourself, this was not worth the money, ba! Lin Qinhes eyes fell on his face, and he understood his thoughts: Dont worry, you wont be sold. Tao Xi lowered his head in embarrassment. Pushing the menu to Lin Qinhes side, he said, I cant order it. You order, ba. He felt that it was painful to order any dish, and he kept memorizing crimson gates reek with meat and ale1 in his mind. Lin Qinhe didnt say anything, but directly told the waiter a list of dishes, obviously familiar with it. October was a good time to eat crabs. Tao Xi had never eaten it, but it did not prevent him from coveting it for a long time However, when the crab was served, he was dumbfounded again. Tao Xi raised his head to look at Lin Qinhe and blinked, his tone was frank and innocent: I cant do it. The waiter on the side was ready to walk over to provide crab peeling service, but Lin Qinhe glanced faintly, and then his eyes went down extremely well. Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe wash his hands and opened the whole set of crab peeling tools on the side. There were sticks, tweezers, small hammers it was very professional at first sight. He used his white and slender fingers with a tool to cut off the crab legs one by one, knocked open the crab shell, and slowly removed the crab stomach, crab heart and other unwanted parts, then used a long-handled spoon to scrape off the cream of the crab. Tao Xi first stared at the movements of Lin Qinhes hand intently, only to feel that he was worthy of playing the piano, even the crabs were so beautifully peeled. But then his attention was drawn to the shiny crab roe on the metal spoon, and he couldnt help but swallow his saliva. Tao Xi shifted his gaze from the crab to Lin Qinhes face, fluttered his eyelashes up and down a few times, gave a wow, and complimented: You are amazing! His eyes were shining, and there was an undisguised I want to eat in his eyes. Lin Qinhe was not complimented. He handed the long-handled spoon containing the crab roe to the other side, placed it directly in front of Tao Xi and said, Try it. At that moment Tao Xi wanted to directly grab the spoon that Lin Qinhe handed over and eat the crab roe, but he was afraid that Lin Qinhe would mind. At last, he reached out and took the spoon from Lin Qinhe, smiling and saying thank you before eating the crab roe into his mouth. Lin Qinhe retracted his hand and curled his fingers on the table. Tao Xi tasted the taste on the tip of his tongue before swallowing it, squinting his eyes in satisfaction and exclaiming, Its delicious! Then he saw Lin Qinhe start peeling a second crab. Tao Xi then followed Lin Qinhes example and peeled the crab. When he was halfway through, Lin Qinhe had already put the scraped off crab paste on a plate and handed it to him, then started picking the crab leg meat again, not eating any at all. He was stunned and asked: Arent you going to eat it? Lin Qinhe said flatly: Im allergic to crabs. Why invited him to eat crabs here if he was allergic? Tao Xi lowered his gaze, lowered his head and ate the crab paste that Lin Qinhe had made for him, and the heart inside his chest was getting more and more agitated and restless. The feeling was indescribable. Startled and ambiguous, love had already taken root and plucked, there was a problem, but it was like burying the seeds of a winter, never daring to break through the ground Perhaps he could try to see. After Tao Xi talked about a few things about school, he naturally talked about another thing: A few days ago, a girl in another class asked me to send you a love letter. I refused for you. You wont blame me, ba? Lin Qinhe paused when peeling the crab, and said indifferently: Dont blame you, I wouldnt have accepted it. Tao Xi firmly held the chopsticks, his palms were a little sweaty, and he calmly said the next sentence: I think so too, and then she asked me if you have someone you like, I said there should be none, Lin Qinhe doesnt seem like he has someone he likes. He lowered his head and ate some of the crab legs that Lin Qinhe had picked for him, and the fresh and sweet taste filled his tongue. Lin Qinhe was silent for a while, then suddenly whispered: Not necessarily. At that moment Tao Xi heard the sound of a machine turning softly in his brain, like the hands of a clock pointing to a new node, but he didnt know what the next second meant. He bit the tip of his tongue, the slight pain concealed the sweetness of the crab legs, and asked, as if unintentionally: What does not necessarily mean?? You dont really have someone you like, right? Then he raised the corner of his mouth and smiled, asking with a hint of gossip Bi Chengfei: Its not a girl from our class, is it? He regretted it after asking. His heart seemed to be pinched by a hand, neither light nor heavy, neither up nor down, neither left nor right. Even Lin Qinhes action of peeling crabs on his hands made him feel frightened, so he had to bow his head to eat. Lin Qinhe once again stopped the movement of his hands, lifted his eyes to look at Tao Xi who was lowering his head and poking the crab leg meat with chopsticks one by one, and said, Thats not what I meant. Then, what did it mean? Tao Xi said Oh, and stopped poking his chopsticks. He picked up a crab leg, dipped it in a vinegar dish and ate it in his mouth, letting the sour taste fill the entire mouth, and his sour eyes were also blurred. It was just a false alarm, but his chest still couldnt stop getting sour. The atmosphere was subtly quiet for a few seconds, with only the sound of crab shells being pried open with a click, unobtrusively revealing the softest place under the light. Tao Xi was ready to say something else to change the subject, but suddenly he heard Lin Qinhe ask, What about you? His heart tightened and for some reason he instantly understood what Lin Qinhe was asking. He smiled and said, Didnt you say I cant fall in love early? Grandpa Qiao also said that to me today, so of course I wont have any ideas. Lin Qinhe put the crab leg meat on a plate and said flatly, So you had an idea? Tao Xi was silent for a few seconds, then replied with Lin Qinhes original sentence: I didnt mean that. Since you didnt tell me, then I wouldnt tell you either. He was a little wronged. Lin Qinhe put down the crab peeling tool in his hand, his gaze slightly sunken as he looked at Tao Xi across the table, his voice lowered: Huang Qing? Tao Xi was taken aback and looked at Lin Qinhe blankly with his eyes wide open, and his two eyelashes trembled. However, his expression seemed to make Lin Qinhes eyes darker, and he didnt even pass the peeled crab legs to him. Tao Xi reacted suddenly, shook his head like a rattle, couldnt say anything: How is it possible?! Huang Qing only likes to study, okay? Lin Qinhes face still doesnt look good and his voice becomes a little deeper: You seem to know her very well. Tao Xi squinted his eyes, remembering Lin Qinhes usual hostility towards Huang Qing, he couldnt help but say: Lin Qinhe, are you a little nervous now that midterm exam is approaching? In fact, you dont need to be nervous, you must be better than Huang Qing in the exam. Sit firmly in the first place, I believe you! However, his encouragement seemed to have no effect. Lin Qinhe still didnt give him the crab legs. He pulled the corners of his mouth and smiled, before he said coldly, Isnt it you who should be nervous? The tone was extremely sarcastic. Tao Xi was discouraged, his shoulders shrunk, and he complained discontentedly: Why are you talking about mid-term exams during dinner? Im so nervous that Im not in the mood to eat crabs anymore. It was the wicked who complained first.2 Lin Qinhe furrowed his brows deeper. Picking up the dish of crab legs and buckling it in front of Tao Xi with a slight force, he commanded, You must eat it for me. The subtle atmosphere instantly ran clean. __________________________________ T/N: hey guys, so I moved this here since Ive another project on this site and its more easier for more to post it on one site. also, the footnote is also more convenient for you to use (no more click the number then click back!). anyway, the another book Im currently translating is yet another abandoned (and abused and bullied) mc. its quite heartwarming and angsty too, at least for me. tho, it touches some heavy topics (just a little, just mc back story). ml is older than mc, mc is in the third year of high school while ml is in the senior year in university. its one of my favourites and ig if you like this, you might like that one too! the book is Reverse Approach by the way and its on this site too. thank you! its from ancient poem: T·Ѓǡ(eng. Crimson gates reek with meat and ale, while on the streets are bones of the frozen dead) it means that while the rich people wine and dine, the poor people die of cold by the roadside. a thief cries thief / the guilty party files the suit CH 31 Tao Xi felt as if Lin Qinhe was angry again, seemingly starting from the topic of Huang Qing. Although Lin Qinhe kept a sullen face and did not say anything, his hands were still peeling crabs for him, and he himself only ate some light porridge and side dishes from the beginning to the end. Tao Xi silently ate the crab meat prepared by Lin Qinhe, with sour and sweet bubbles rising in his chest, but he did not dare to try again to puncture those bubbles. Ambiguous and sweet, but it was also scary. He wanted to dwell on it for a while with his eyes closed, even if he was making a fool of himself. After eating, Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe to the outside of the restaurant, he deliberately walked very slowly, because soon he would be sent back to Wenhua No.1 High School, back to the empty dormitory. He couldnt bear to separate from Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe also seemed to have slowed down his pace. In the winding corridor, the lake was lit up with starry lotus lights, and there was noisy noise in the pavilion not far away. The night sky was as clear and soft as the lake water, soaked with a crescent moon. But the space above the lake was very quiet, with only the creak of feet on the floor of the promenade. Lowering his head, Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe and quietly stepped on Lin Qinhes shadow. If only stepping on the shadow could keep the person. He thought in a daze, and accidentally ran into the back of Lin Qinhe who had stopped abruptly. Im sorry. Tao Xi touched his nose and said to Lin Qinhe angrily, feeling nervous. Wouldnt get caught, right? But it was not illegal to step on the shadow. Lin Qinhe turned slightly and suddenly reached out to hold his left wrist. Tao Xis left hand trembled suddenly. He breathed lightly and tilted his head to look at Lin Qinhe. The light in the promenade was dim. Lin Qinhe looked at him with his long eyelashes down, his dark eyes swaying with the light of the lake and the moonlight. The swaying was thrilling. Lin Qinhe pulled him to his side and said in a low voice, Walk beside me. Dont always look at me from behind. Tao Xis eyes quivered, and Lin Qinhe quickly let go of his wrist, but the warm touch remained there without dissipating, rushing along his arm to the heart, stirring violently. He suddenly couldnt tell if he couldnt let go of Lin Qinhe, or the gentle moonlight tonight. The two walked silently and tacitly side by side in the night and lake light, crossing the promenade on the lake and when they came to the bright and spacious hall, Tao Xi was still a little uncomfortable and raised his hand to shade his eyes. This was a very famous crab cuisine restaurant. Despite it being already late, the lounge area at the edge of the hall still had many customers who were waiting in line for a seat. Tao Xi suddenly thought that Lin Qinhe could take him directly to the private room for dinner, didnt he need to reserve a seat in advance? However, Lin Qinhe obviously met him by chance at Qiaos home tonight, and brought him along for dinner. A guess came out of a branch deep in his heart, and just thinking about it for a moment, it was as if a firework exploded, making him dazzled. But maybe it was just a false alarm again. Tao Xi turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe on the side again, and his restless heart kept urging him to try again. He opened his mouth, and when he wanted to ask something, he suddenly heard a familiar voice. Qinhe ge, why are you here? Huh, Tao Xis here? Not far across the street, Yang Duole was holding a cup of milk tea, followed by Yang Zhengming in a suit and leather shoes. In the lounge area of ??the lobby, Yang Zhengming was holding a few dolls from the claw machine. Obviously, he had just accompanied Yang Duole to catch the dolls. When the father and son came over, Yang Zhengming first smiled at Lin Qinhe, then looked at Tao Xi on the side. He was taken aback for a moment, before he smiled politely at him and then asked Lin Qinhe: Qinhe, are you coming to dinner with your classmate? Lin Qinhe almost instantly felt the mood of the person around him drop. He turned his face to look at Tao Xi, whose eyelashes were drooping, blocking him slightly behind him, and nodded to Yang Zhengming and greeted: Uncle Yang. Then he looked at Yang Duole, who was looking at himself and Tao Xi, and said with a frown, Why did you go out just after being discharged from the hospital? The minimally invasive surgery performed on Yang Duole was not serious, so he was discharged in less than a week. However, according to Luo Zhengyin and his grandparents careful and caring attitude, Yang Duole would never be allowed to leave the house without recuperation. Yang Duole glanced at Tao Xi again, and complained to Lin Qinhe: I cant eat anything in the hospital, Im almost suffocated. After finally returning home, I still had to eat light food. After holding back for a long time, I found the opportunity to escape to eat crabs today. Yang Zhengming smiled helplessly when he heard the words, and said: He usually ignores me when I look for him. This is the only time he thinks of his dad, Im not not used to it. Although he was talking about his son, his tone was a bit spoiled. Yang Duole glared at Yang Zhengming and cursed: Who can be as heartless as you! He and Yang Zhengming were estranged since he was a kid. In the past few years, Yang Zhengming suddenly wanted to ease the relationship with him, so the two came into contact more. Yang Zhengming still had a smile on his lips, not angry at his sons lack of respect. Lin Qinhe was distracted, he vaguely felt that he had to take Tao Xi to leave here as soon as possible. When he was about to say goodbye to the father and son in front of him, Yang Zhengming suddenly said to Tao Xi who had been silent for a long time: Tao Xi, thank you for bringing the gift for Lele last time. Tao Xi raised his eyelashes, and he glanced at the various dolls in Yang Zhengmings arms that were incompatible with his suits. Those dolls were beautiful and exquisite, the toys that every child would love and want from their parents. He looked at Yang Zhengming with a polite smile. Raising the corner of his mouth and smiling, he said politely: Youre welcome, Uncle Yang. Yang Duole looked at Tao Xi and then at Yang Zhengming. The faint discomfort became stronger and stronger. He pursed his lower lip and asked Lin Qinhe: Qinhe ge, arent you allergic to crabs? Why are you here? There was confusion in his tone, and more of a complaint. He had always loved crabs and had pestered Lin Qinhe to take him to the crab house whenever the season came since he was young, and although it was meaningless to eat with Lin Qinhe because the Lin family all ate without saying anything, he knew that Lin Qinhe was very good at peeling crabs. However, Lin Qinhe would not agree no matter how coquettish he acted. But why did Lin Qinhe appear here? And with Tao Xi too? Lin Qinhe said flatly: I just wanted to invite Tao Xi to dinner, so I brought him here. Yang Duole frowned, showing an unhappy look. Yang Zhengming smiled and asked Lin Qinhe: The private room here is not easy to grab. You booked it in advance, when did you book it? Lin Qinhe replied: Last Sunday. Tao Xis eyelashes trembled, and he looked at Lin Qinhe quickly, looked at his indifferent profile, and listened to him indifferently saying to Yang Duole and Yang Zhengming: Its getting late, I have to send Tao Xi back, so Ill leave first. Knowing that this young master of the Lin family disliked himself as much as his mother did, Yang Zhengming nodded and said, Our movie is also about to start, so Ill invite you and your mother to dinner next time I have the chance. Lin Qinhe responded perfunctorily. Before Tao Xi had time to say goodbye to the two politely, Lin Qinhe held his arm and he was led to walk quickly towards the main door. He thought Lin Qinhe was going back, just as he was eager to get away from here quickly, so he followed Lin Qinhe in silence all the way to the outdoors. The moonlight was deep, but Tao Xi found that Lin Qinhe was not walking towards the parking lot where they came before. He was taken to a lamp post not far away, and the bright yellow light shone through the frosted glass with a halo. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe in confusion, who stood in front of him and lowered his head to look into his eyes, his eyes were focused and serious. It seemed he wanted to see his mood through his eyes. Tao Xis heart tightened. He obediently raised his chin slightly, raised the corners of his mouth, and curled his eyes. The bright yellow light casted two shadows under the eyelashes, revealing a smile. He naturally asked Lin Qinhe: Whats wrong? Lin Qinhe only looked at his eyes in silence. They were very close, surrounded by warm lights, so close that Tao Xi had to breathe lightly, so close that it was hard for him to maintain the smile on his face. Tao Xi blinked. Reaching his hand out to touch his face, he asked jokingly: Is there something on my face? Lin Qinhe asked in a low voice: Why is it so sad after seeing Yang Duole? His voice was softer than the moonlight, as if to coax the person in front of him to say something. He found that Tao Xis several inexplicable low moods seemed to be related to Yang Duole. Tao Xis hand touching his face paused. His eyelashes trembled fiercely, and his chest was sour with water bubbling out. At that moment, he suddenly felt that he could not be as strong and optimistic as he promised. He wanted to hug Lin Qinhe again, cry on his shoulder, and tell him everything regardless. But Tao Xi was silent for a while and calmly said: I just suddenly thought of my sister. She is also called Lele. She is also sick. I miss her very much. He smiled at Lin Qinhe again and said in a relaxed tone: Fortunately, the school has sent me a lot of money, and I send the money back, so she can buy medicine to cure her illness. He didnt know that his eyelashes had been trembling slightly, as if trying to restrain what overflowed from his eyes. Lin Qinhe frowned, knowing that Tao Xi was not telling the truth. He looked at the smile of the person in front of him, and felt that his heart was pierced by an invisible needle. This kind of subtle pain was strange to him, but he knew it was distressed. Just because of an insincere smile. He did not know at that time how much pain and resentment lurked behind this smile, and how much his heart would hurt after knowing it. Tao Xi couldnt bear Lin Qinhes gaze. He turned his face slightly and urged, pretending to be anxious: Didnt you say you want to go back? Time is running out, I still have a lot of homework to write. Obviously he wanted to stay with Lin Qinhe, but he couldnt do it now. Copy mine after going back. Lin Qinhe said confidently, suddenly holding his wrist again and leading him into a room. Tao Xi didnt understand what Lin Qinhe was going to do again, but he obediently did not resist and was taken all the way back to the hall. Until he was taken to a row of claw machines, he couldnt hold back his surprise anymore. He opened his eyes and looked at Lin Qinhe, not knowing what to say. Lin Qinhe seemed a little embarrassed by the row of pink and blue claw machines and dropped a sentence, You wait for me here. He immediately turned around and walked towards the opposite front desk, seemed to be to exchange game coins. Tao Xi stared at Lin Qinhes back motionlessly, and clenched his fingers. Lin Qinhe quickly came back with a pile of game coins in his hand. He looked extremely uncomfortable with a cold face because the cashier at the front desk had made a joke to him. Tao Xi looked at the silver metal game coins in Lin Qinhes hand. The silver coins were shining like stars under the bright light. He asked Lin Qinhe, Why do you suddenly want to play this? Its a kids play. The claw machine was too inconsistent with Lin Qinhes persona. Lin Qinhe was stunned, and after a moment of silence, he whispered, I just saw you keep looking at the doll Uncle Yang was holding, and thought you liked it. Tao Xi was also stunned. He looked at the game coins that Lin Qinhe was holding carefully in his hand, and looked at Lin Qinhes uncomfortable face. Nearby, there were many doll-catching couples and parents with children were gawking at Lin Qinhe, laughing and whispering about how such a tall, handsome man could also catch dolls. Tao Xi was quiet for a few seconds and suddenly raised the corners of his mouth to reveal a smile, a smile that was genuinely happy. In fact, what did he like about those dolls? But he was really happy. He took out a silver coin from Lin Qinhes palm. The silver coin at his fingertips was shining like a sixpence under the moon, and his eyes were shining with stars as he smiled at Lin Qinhe and said: No, I like it very much, but I have never played it. Can you teach me? Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis eyes, his cold brows softened a bit. He put the game currency on the small table aside, took out one of them and threw it into the claw machine, showing Tao Xi how to catch the doll. The claw machine took the height of the children and girls into consideration so the console was set very low. Lin Qinhe had to bend down. Tao Xi also bent down while standing next to Lin Qinhe. He glanced at Lin Qinhes profile, then looked at the glass window full of dolls, and the corners of the mouth could not help but turn up. It was as if it was not a doll, but his favorite candy, exuding a sweet smell. Lin Qinhe held the joystick and asked him, Which one do you want? Tao Xi asked in a low voice, Anything is fine? Lin Qinhe nodded. Tao Xi pointed his finger at a Pikachu doll that was most likely to be caught at the top, and said, I want this. Lin Qinhe began to concentrate on manipulating the clip, adjusting it for a while to make sure that it would be successful. But in fact, he had never been to an amusement park since a long time ago, much less playing with claw machines. The first Pikachu clip fell off when he was close to the exit. Lin Qinhe frowned, his fingers curled up and he looked a little embarrassed. There were very few things in this world that he wanted to do but couldnt do well. Unfortunately, he encountered it today. Tao Xi tried his best to hold back his laughter. At the age of sixteen or seventeen, he was aroused to be competitive and eager to try: Ill do it! Lin Qinhe stepped aside. Tao Xi threw the silver coin in and followed Lin Qinhes example, carefully manipulating the clip, looking left and right, looking up and down, making sure for a long time before dropping the clip. The clip that successfully caught the Pikachu slowly rose, the two people couldnt help but hold their breath nervously, eyes following the clip that slowly moved to the exit. Tao Xi thought this should be no problem, but the Pikachu fell inexplicably near the exit. The two were quiet for a few seconds. Tao Xi said: There should be a problem with this clip. Lin Qinhe said: It must be. The two people bent over in front of the low crane machine, spent all the game coins, and finally only caught two dolls, a white bear and a pink bear. Tao Xi thought that Lin Qinhe didnt like pink, so he handed the white bear to Lin Qinhe and said, This is yours, and the pink one is mine. Do you have any opinion? Lin Qinhe took the little white bear and nodded, No opinion. The two had finished dividing the spoils. They looked up and saw that there were almost no figures in the hall, and then looked at the time to realize it was already 10:30. Tao Xi pinched the pink bears ears. Thinking of the pile of papers he hadnt done yet, he was anxious and asked Lin Qinhe: You said youll let me copy the homework, you didnt lie to me, right? Lin Qinhe held the white bear in his hand. He looked at him and said, I wont lie to you. Tao Xi felt that Lin Qinhes gaze and tone of voice when he looked at himself were a little too serious. It was so serious that it was like saying some kind of vow. Then he finally heard the heartbeat in his chest that he tried to ignore all night, so restless and impenetrable. He looked at Lin Qinhe, and suddenly wanted to ask the question regardless, but the words fluttered back and forth on the tip of his tongue, and he just couldnt say it. Maybe he should find a better time and make more adequate preparations. He thought. Tao Xi tried his best to return his heartbeat to calm, smiled and said, Hurry back, go back and copy homework. But Lin Qinhe asked him: Then are you happy now? Tao Xis hand squeezing the bears ear twitched. Boom. He heard his heartbeat again. _____________________________________ The author has something to say: gkd! gkd!1 T/N: Im really hurrying up, trying to post the chapter them getting together by this week. hurry up CH 32 Im very happy. Tao Xi answered Lin Qinhe with a smile. Very very happy. But he was a high school student after all, and the result of being happy was that when he went back that night, he did his homework until 2:30. Fortunately, Lin Qinhe took a picture and sent the answer while doing it, otherwise he wouldnt be able to finish until morning. At 2:35, Tao Xi finally finished copying the last question on the last photo sent by Lin Qinhe. He yawned and typed good night in the WeChat dialog box with the note Moon and sent it over. Feeling sleepy, he turned off the phone, put the pink bear doll that he caught at night on the pillow, and soon fell into a deep sleep, accompanied by the gentle moonlight in his dream. When he woke up the next morning, he looked at his phone and realized that at 2:37, Lin Qinhe had replied Good night. He thought that Lin Qinhe would go to sleep after finishing his homework, but he didnt expect it to be so late. Tao Xi scratched his hair, regretting how he slept so quickly. He thought for a while, and replied Good morning in the faint morning light of the new day. Lin Qinhe didnt reply this time. Those ambiguous thoughts that were faint in the moonlight were secretly pressed in the bottom of his heart, Tao Xi had no time to test it more, he was about to be driven crazy by the upcoming midterm exams. Or rather, he was going crazy because of Lin Qinhe. Are you sure I have to finish these papers? Before evening self-study, Tao Xi counted the papers in front of him. There were twenty of them! He was lying on the desk, his head resting on his arm, raising his eyelashes to look up at Lin Qinhe, attempting to sell his misery and plead for mercy: I cant finish my homework every day, and I cant write until one or two oclock, so I really dont have time to write these papers Lin Qinhe relentlessly said, You dont need to do homework, these papers must be done. He didnt know what the teachers of each subject felt when they heard these words. Tao Xi was desperate anyway. Then what about my homework? Continue to copy me. Okay. Tao Xi put aside his homework and started to concentrate on the papers Lin Qinhe gave him. As he did the questions, he gradually found that the questions on these papers seemed to be his weakest points of knowledge and frequently wrong questions. He held the pen and turned to look at Lin Qinhe next to him. He didnt realize that he rarely watched Lin Qinhe quietly from the corner as before. It seemed to have the courage to look straight at him. Lin Qinhe was also holding the pen and writing something, and noticing his eyes, he turned his face sideways and asked him, Cant do it? Tao Xi shook his head and continued to bury his head in his paper. In the two weeks before the midterm exam, Tao Xi had no breathing time every day and was buried by the papers without respite and Lin Qinhe would recycle them after he was done. The one that appeared on his desk the next day was the one that had been marked and corrected with a red pen. Lin Qinhe strictly refused to accept even the comic series. Now the first priority is the midterm exam. Lin Qinhes tone left no room for him to say something, serious like a teacher. The good student Tao Xi had to follow. The whole school was filled with the tense atmosphere of the coming of the big exam, and the strongest class was not surprised. After all, the ranking of this exam would directly determine everyones class in the next two months. Tao Xi was nervous for two weeks, but not two days before the exam. He has always had a stable mentality. The more exams he took, the better he could perform. Otherwise he couldnt have come to Wenhua No. 1 High School with the first place in Qingshui County. Not to mention Lin Qinhe, a perverted xueba, he probably never knew how to write the word nervous. But Bi Chengfei belonged to the kind of people who hugged the Buddhas feet and worshiped the gods and Buddhas of all directions and engaged in feudal superstition immediately before the exam. Xi ge, remember to eat two eggs and a fried dough stick tomorrow morning! It means that the door has a perfect score of 100! Bi Chengfei turned around and said mysteriously. Tao Xi was doing the papers and said without looking up: Language, mathematics and foreign languages full score is 150, you can take the test yourself if you want 100, thank you. Right. Bi Chengfei thought for a while, and then excitedly said, Then turn to Koi, this is very spiritual. I have turned two weeks in a row, every morning and evening. Tonight Ill post a Koi in Moments, you remember to like it! Bi Chengfei had no ambition and it was his greatest honor to be at the end of Class 1. Tao Xi was never superstitious, but agreed to Bi Chengfei perfunctorily, just wanting him to shut up and not to disturb his revision. Bi Chengfei wanted to continue to share his pre-exam superstition knowledge with Tao Xi but when Lin Qinhe, who was writing, raised his head and glanced at him, he felt a chill in his heart and quickly turned away. Bi Chengfei looked at the small mountain of review materials in front of him. He folded his palms and tried to lift something from the hill, carefully cupping it and slapping it to his head.1 The tablemate, Hu Tong, rolled her eyes. The self-study teacher on the night before the exam would not give lectures, allowing all students to review freely. In the evening, Tao Xi finished his dinner as quickly as possible, stepped on the twilight and flew to the classroom to continue his revision, and found that Lin Qinhe was actually in his seat, holding a pen down and writing something in a book. Tao Xi saw that Lin Qinhe had written something on this book for a few days. He was very curious, but he didnt ask. He lightened his footsteps and returned to his seat, taking out the paper he had done before to review the wrong questions, there was no point in doing the questions at this time. After looking carefully for a while, a hand suddenly appeared in front of him, and that hand placed a notebook on his desk. It was a black-covered notebook that Lin Qinhe had been writing on in the past few days. Review the contents on this well at night. Lin Qinhe withdrew his hand and closed the lid of the pen, his tone was as indifferent and certain as ever. Tao Xi stared blankly at the notebook in front of him. He stretched out his hand and opened it page by page. On it were review key points of the subject written by pen. Each point echoed the wrong questions in the papers he made during this period, with detailed notes on the directions and types of questions that might appear in the exam. It was as detailed as a supplementary teaching material tailored for him. The ink traces were brand new, as if passing through the autumn rain tide. When the time went wrong, he suddenly recalled the second day of school. At that time, he put up a pitiful posture as much as possible and begged Lin Qinhe. Can I borrow your notebook to copy it? Cannot. Then, Lin Qinhe handed that black notebook to Yang Duole, the person who took over everything he had. All the emotions were surging, and it turned into a heartache in a flash. Like the bitter wine that was brewed wrong at the beginning, only sour and astringent remained at the end of brewing. Now he looked at the notebook Lin Qinhe had given him,his heart seemed to have been soaked in bitter wine all night and suddenly fell into a pool of sugar water. But it was still sour, sour in the heart, sour in the nose, sour in the eyes, and sour in the whole chest. The grievances that had nowhere to be released at that time suddenly poured out from the bottom of my heart uncontrollably two months later. Tao Xi blinked hard and dispelled the mist in front of him, preparing to say thank you to Lin Qinhe, but he suddenly heard Lin Qinhe ask him from the side: Can you stay in Class 1? His voice was careful and soft, as if he was afraid of making him nervous. All his efforts were almost in vain, Tao Xi used all his strength to suppress the sourness in his eyes, he slightly raised his chin, smiled at Lin Qinhe and said with confidence: Of course. The tone was proud and self-confident, and it belonged to the age of sixteen or seventeen. Lin Qinhes eyebrows stretched a bit, as if he was relieved, he stood up from his seat and said, Im going to eat. Then turned and left the classroom. Tao Xi watched Lin Qinhes back disappear at the door before lowering his head and continuing to look at the notebook in front of him, looking at the sparse handwriting on it that belonged to Lin Qinhe. The last class of the evening self-study was used to set up the examination room. All the seats that were close together were pulled apart, and all the books and materials were placed at the end of the classroom. During the end of class period, Bi Chengfei took advantage of Lin Qinhes absence in the classroom, secretly stretched out his claws and touched Lin Qinhes desk. It seemed that he felt that it was not enough, so he touched it twice. Tao Xi, who was still reading his notebook, noticed Bi Chengfeis sneaky little movements and asked, You are really getting bolder and stronger. Why are you touching his desk? Bi Chengfei looked at the back door and whispered, covering his mouth, Xueshens table must have been enlightened, so I will take my luck! Li Xiaoyuan, who was distributing the test number slips, also sneaked over, reached out his hand and quickly touched Lin Qinhes table. Several other students nearby were not willing to lag behind and came over and touched it a few times. Tao Xi was speechless. Why are these elementary school superstitions so prevalent in the best classes in Wenhua No.1 High School? After the people who came to rub the exam luck dispersed, Tao Xi looked at the notebook for a while, thought about it, and reached out his hand to touch Lin Qinhes table without holding back. He would rather believe it, not touch it for nothing, he said to himself. Because the seat had been pulled apart by half a meter, he was too lazy to get up and sat directly on the chair. Tilting one of the chair legs and pressing his waist to the right side, he stretched out his arm to touch the corner of Lin Qinhes table. As a result, he was caught by Lin Qinhe who happened to come in through the back door. Tao Xis hands were still at the corner of the table and his waist was still falling. His face flushed, he quickly retracted his hands to sit upright, and because he was so flustered, the chairs feet almost fell off. Lin Qinhe came over, standing and not sitting, looking down at him. The meaning of his eyes was very obvious. What the hell was going on? Bi Chengfei was afraid that he would be confessed. Knowing that Lin Qinhe hated others touching his things, he frequently winked at Tao Xi. Tao Xi took the initiative to confess, and smiled awkwardly at Lin Qinhe: Ill just rub your exam luck. Lin Qinhe didnt say anything, but calmly sat down and started reading. Tao Xi breathed a sigh of relief. Warn yourself, feudal superstition was too bad! The night study quickly passed. In the second half of the evening study, the atmosphere was a bit restless, some people began to give up on themselves, some people began to blind confidence, some people began to use the quantum wave reading method2, the book turned faster than the fan. Tao Xi belonged to the stable as an old dog type. After memorizing the notes given by Lin Qinhe twice, it was exactly the time of the end of class. As soon as the bell rang, the students who could not wait rushed out of the classroom carrying their school bag, and Bi Chengfei was always the first. Tao Xi put the notebook in his school bag carefully, and planned to check it out when he returned to the dormitory. He picked up his school bag and hurriedly said to Lin Qinhe, who was already carrying his school bag to leave: Wait! Lin Qinhe stopped, looked at him and asked, Whats the matter? Tao Xi bent his eyes, smiled at Lin Qinhe, and said softly in a very solemn and serious manner. Lin Qinhe, jiayou for the exam! Although Lin Qinhes didnt need it.3 Lin Qinhe looked down at him, the corners of his lips lifted slightly. He raised his hand and rubbed his hair gently, and said to him: Give the exam luck to you. Then turned around and left the classroom. Tao Xi stood there blankly, his ears were uncontrollably red. He thought that his heart might be going wrong. He seemed to be unstable. Tao Xi returned to his dorm room distracted, forcing himself to continue reading his notebook. After a while, he was still restless, so he simply gave up and took out his phone to brush his WeChat Moments. He also remembered to give Bi Chengfei likes on the Koi picture, and ended up brushing up on Lin Qinhes new friend circle first. There was only one photo. In the photo was a pool with a golden glow. There were dozens of golden red koi swimming in the pool, glowing in the sunlight and waves of light. It looked divine. Also quite superstitious. Tao Xi couldnt help laughing, not expecting Lin Qinhe to be engaged in superstition. He gave this picture a like, and then gave a like to the koi picture posted by Bi Chengfei. At this time in the Lin family villa, Luo Zhengyin had just delivered a plate of fruit to Yang Duole, who was immersed in reviewing and holding Buddhas feet, and then walked towards the piano room with another plate of fruit. In the past, Lin Qinhe was usually studying or reading in his room at this time, but tonight he was practicing the piano abnormally. She was holding the fruit and saw Lin Qinhe sitting in front of the piano playing a piece of music, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence. Why do you suddenly want to play the piano? Dont you have midterm exams tomorrow? Luo Zhengyin asked, puzzled. Lin Qinhe withdrew his fingers, frowned, and said after a moment of silence, Im a little nervous. Luo Zhengyin looked at her son in amazement, she had never seen Lin Qinhe get nervous before an exam, and he had never been anxious about even the most difficult exams. What happened this time? Why are you nervous? I thought only Lele would be nervous. After all, he took so many days of sick leave. Luo Zhengyin couldnt help but ask. Lin Qinhe didnt answer this question, only vaguely saying: Its nothing. Luo Zhengyin didnt ask any more questions, put the fruit on the table, said get some rest early and left the piano room. Lin Qinhe raised his hand and started playing the piano again. CH 33 The mid-term exam lasted for two days. After the math exam was finished on the first afternoon, Tao Xi saw Bi Chengfei gather a group of people to discuss answers as soon as he entered the classroom, as if he couldnt wait to tell the world. I chose C for the last multiple-choice question. What did you choose? Absolutely B, the class monitor also chose B! Its over, Im dead! Tao Xi covered his ears and returned to his seat. He was the most annoyed to discuss answers after the exam. The exam was like spilled water1 and discussing answers would only add to the anxiety. Tao Xi was lying on the table to cover his ears, though, the effect was not good. He looked at tomorrows subject review materials while silently reciting not listening, not listening, the tortoise chant Buddhist scripture2, and suddenly, a hand bent its finger and knocked on his desk twice. He suddenly looked up and found that Lin Qinhe was standing by his desk, looking at him with his head down and knitted eyebrows, and asked in a low voice: Did you have a problem with the exam? The look and tone seemed a bit nervous. Tao Xis eyes lit up and he hurriedly stood up, whispering quietly to Lin Qinhe, I seem to do it well. He did feel he did okay in both the Mathematics and Language exam today. But Im so nervous listening to their answers to the questions, Im afraid its an illusion that I feel good. Tao Xi raised his chin in the direction of Bi Chengfei not far away, complained to Lin Qinhe, and then covered his ears again. Lin Qinhes slightly wrinkled brow stretched out, he looked at Tao Xi who was covering his ears for a while, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, and said to him, Put your hands down. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe blankly and obediently put down the hand covering his ears. Then Lin Qinhe suddenly took a step closer to him, and the distance abruptly narrowed. His breathing was stagnant, and his eyelashes trembled lightly as he looked at Lin Qinhes face close at hand. Lin Qinhe lowered his head, raised his hand to insert his white wireless earphones into his ears. His cool fingertips touched his earlobe during the action. The rhythm of the music soon began to slap on the eardrums. Tao Xi was dumbfounded. He felt his right earlobe was gently pinched, and immediately trembled like a frightened rabbit. He stared at Lin Qinhe with his eyes wide open, but he couldnt say anything. Lin Qinhe withdrew his hand, rubbed his index finger and thumb together and asked Tao Xi calmly, Can you still hear it? Tao Xi shook his head ignorantly. He couldnt hear the voice of Bi Chengfeis group discussing the answers, nor could he hear the music coming from the earphones, he could only hear the increasingly violent beating in his chest. He didnt need to cover his ears, but he wanted to cover his hot face. Tao Xi lowered his gaze in a panic, whispered a thank you and quickly sat back in his seat, lying on his desk and continuing to read the notes, his head buried very low. Lin Qinhe looked down at Tao Xis red ears and returned to his seat. He smiled silently, took out his phone and changed to a more cheerful song, turning the volume up a bit. Then, as expected, the person sitting over there trembled. The two-day exam soon ended. The paper grading efficiency of Wenhua No. 1 High School was not generally high. The score would be available on the third day after the exam, and the complete score ranking would be posted in the first floor hallway of the teaching building early in the morning. Of course, many parents who were eagerly concerned about their grades would ask the head teacher about their grades and rankings in advance. The night before the announcement of the results, Zhou Qiang worked overtime in the office until ten oclock, during which he received at least twenty phone calls from the parents of Class 1 students, including one from Lin Qinhe, who had never called him before. That night, Xu Ziqi also called his mother in the dormitory. Tao Xi was sitting and working on a question. He raised his eyes to look at Xu Ziqi and saw that the expression on his face went from anxiety to shock to frustration in a way that was visible to the naked eye, as fast as a change of face in a Peking Opera. What? How could this happen?! Xu Ziqis face looked angry3 as he flew out of the dormitory door. Pan Yan snorted, took out his cell phone and played a song A Spray of Plum Blossom publicly, very gloating. Tao Xi was not in the mood to be happy. His face was calm, he turned the pen in his hand, turning faster and faster, and finally flew out directly. He was going to die of nervousness. Even more nervous than when he was waiting for Qingshui Countys final entrance exam results. He had a dream that night, dreaming that he had not entered the top fifty, and went to the second class with Xu Ziqi,and then saw Lin Qinhe and Yang Duole walking into Class 1 together, laughing and talking. In the dream, he shouted out to Lin Qinhe, who turned around and said indifferently to him, Youre not worthy to be my tablemate. Tao Xi woke up feeling cold and sweaty. After washing, he rushed to the score list in the first floor hallway of the teaching building without eating breakfast. There were already many students huddling in front, and there were bursts of ghost crying and howling and shouting for joy. Tao Xi had a hard time squeezing in, and the first thing he saw was the name of Lin Qinhe hanging high on the achievement list, 27 points higher than the second place Huang Qing. Someone exclaimed, Lin Qinhe is really perverted, its scary enough that he scored 20 points higher than the second last time, but this time he is even higher! Another person tsk-ed, This is too much to give face to the second place, is there any grudge? After confirming that Lin Qinhe was the first, Tao Xi began to look for his own name. Starting from Lin Qinhes name, he looked down, his breath breaking with nervousness. No. 42 was Tao Xi. The moment he saw the ranking, Tao Xi first did not catch his breath, and then he took a long breath out, his heart was beating painfully. He could continue to be Lin Qinhes tablemate! Tao Xi completely relaxed and continued to see Bi Chengfei ranked 50th, the lucky bottom. Yang Duole, 51st. Tao Xi left the results list expressionlessly, but couldnt hold back a gloating laugh as he went up the stairs. As soon as Lin Qinhe entered the classroom in the morning, he saw Tao Xis two eyes looking at him like a light bulb, almost like a tail wagging behind him. He paused in his steps and walked in at a slower pace. Tao Xi diligently helped Lin Qinhe pull out his chair, and as soon as he sat down, he leaned over and grabbed Lin Qinhes arm and shook it excitedly, Lin Qinhe, I can stay in Class 1 now! After saying that, he suddenly realized that he was too excited, and immediately put down his hand in embarrassment and stepped back a bit. Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xis retracted hand, his expression remained unchanged. He asked: How many? Tao Xi knew that Lin Qinhe hadnt looked at the results list. He pursed his lips and said, 42, much better than I expected. Lin Qinhe nodded and said calmly: You did a good job on the exam, congratulations. After he finished, he took a pile of papers out of his bag and put them on the desk. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe, the light in his eyes dimmed. He felt that Lin Qinhes reaction to his results was too flat, and couldnt help but feel a little disappointed. He suddenly thought that he was so excited to continue to be Lin Qinhes tablemate, but it might not be a big deal to Lin Qinhe. Moreover, would Lin Qinhe be upset because Yang Duole dropped out of Class 1? After all, they were friends who had been like brothers for so many years. And he and Lin Qinhe had only known each other for a little over two months. Tao Xi simply cant control himself to think about this problem. Once Yang Duole was involved, he was like a frightened bird suffering from gains and losses, and his joyous excitement instantly sank to the bottom of the lake. He lowered his eyelashes, was silent for a while and still couldnt help but tentatively asked Lin Qinhe: I saw Yang Duole ranked 51th, will you be angry? If it werent for me coming here, he would be exactly fiftieth. Why should I be angry? Lin Qinhe asked almost immediately. Looking at Tao Xi whose eyebrows were drooping, he put down his hand that was getting something from his school bag and continued. You can stay, he cant. It only means that you work harder and better than him, doesnt it? Stunned, Tao Xi lifted her eyelashes to look at Lin Qinhe and heard him say in a softer voice. And, you dont have to compare yourself to anyone. I only know that you can stay in the first class and continue to sit next to me. I am very happy. I am very happy. Tao Xi breathed lightly, looking at Lin Qinhe, his throat seemed to be blocked by a ball of wet cotton, the corners of his mouth gradually rose up, but his eyes were a little sour. Lin Qinhe was always like this, making him want to cry and laugh at the same time. A heart would go from left to right, go up and down, and eventually fall into the warm water, soaking it sour and swelling. Tao Xi bit his inner lip and was speechless. He saw Lin Qinhe take out a black velvet quadrilateral box from his bag, put it in his hand and said to him: This is the midterm reward I promised you. Tao Xi was startled. Looking down at the exquisite gift box in his hand and carefully rubbing the soft velvet with his fingers, as if his heart was scratched by the fluff, he whispered: But havent I already Asked for a self-initiated hug in advance. That doesnt count. Lin Qinhe said firmly, then lowered his voice again, You open it and see, do you like it? Tao Xi listened and opened the box. Inside the box was a bracelet woven with red rope, strung with a candy-sized turquoise stone. The turquoise stone was carved into a small planet, as if the unique blue and green light shines in the bright galaxy. Even if Tao Xi didnt understand gems, he knew that this turquoise must be very expensive. He stared at the turquoise for a long time, and heard the heart beating in his chest, and a sour feeling welled up in his nose. Dont like it? Lin Qinhe asked him softly. Tao Xi immediately shook his head. He took out the bracelet and tried to wear it on his right wrist, but his left hand was a little inflexible, and it took a while for him to wear it. Lin Qinhe stretched out his hand and put the bracelet on Tao Xis right wrist. The red rope was brighter on his white, slim wrist, and the turquoise seemed like a star flying in orbit around his wrist. Tao Xi looked at the bracelet on his right wrist, blinked a few times before raising his head and smiling at Lin Qinhe: Thank you, I like it very much. As long as it is from you, I like it all and cant let go of it. Lin Qinhe glanced at the red rope and turquoise stone on Tao Xis wrist. He had noticed that Tao Xi cared too much about the red string with a peace knot on Yang Duoles right hand. Thinking he liked the red string bracelet, he used the red string to string the turquoise stone together. He looked at Tao Xis eyes that fell full of stars again and whispered, I heard that turquoise signifies peace and good luck, can you do well in the next final exam? In fact, he did not say that turquoise was also the birthstone of December, and he not only wanted to wish him a smooth ending, he also wanted to wish him who was born in December a peaceful life, good luck and worry-free. Tao Xi nodded vigorously and raised his chin slightly, looking satisfied and confident: Dont worry, now that I have a good luck bracelet, I will definitely do well in my exams every time! In fact, he wanted to say that he had used almost all his luck to meet him. Didnt dare to ask for more good luck. Sixteen years ago, when his mother was pregnant with him in Taoxi Bay, she weaved a string of red peace knots for him, wishing him no illness, no disaster, and happiness. But he failed to get the string of peace knots. Now, the person he liked, gave him a string of red rope woven turquoise, wishing him peace and good luck. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe, obviously very close, but he seemed to be looking at this person with great effort, as if many, many years have passed, and he missed him all those years. He was thinking that there would be someone in this world who would be willing to bless him besides his mother. He liked this person so much This person might also like him. Tao Xis left fingers gently fiddled with the turquoise stone on his right wrist, he took a deep breath and suddenly asked Lin Qinhe, Can I take a college entrance exam with you in the future? He pressed his lower lip nervously, and continued to add: I mean, I want to go to the same university as you, Ill apply for whichever one you apply for, no matter how hard it is, Ill definitely try my best to get in, okay? I can work hard for you to enter Wenhua No. 1 High School and work hard enough to stay in Class 1, and I can definitely work hard enough to go to the same university as you. He did not say, not only the university, I want to work hard to walk into your life and hold hands with you on the same path for the rest of your life. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis eyes that were so nervous that his eyelashes fluttered lightly, he curled his fingers into his palm and was silent for a while, as if he had made a big decision in this very short period of time, and whispered. Okay. Tao Xis face instantly blossomed into a smile, his eyes were as bright as evening stars, and the corners of his eyes and eyelashes were adorned with smiles. Lin Qinhe looked at those smiling eyes for a while, turned his face sideways and retracted his gaze. He lowered his head and took out the pen and put it in his hand to play with, rubbing the cold pen with his fingers. But Tao Xi obviously didnt intend to let him go, and leaned close to him again, so close that he could smell the faint smell of shower gel on his body, he turned his head and asked him: So, do you prefer Tsinghua or Peking University now? When the time comes, the two schools will definitely fight for you, ba. If it is me, Ill go to whoever gives me more bonuses. Lin Qinhe looked at the pen in his hand and said, I havent thought about it yet. Tao Xi let out an Oh and could not resist grabbing Lin Qinhes arm again, he anxiously said: Then you must tell me in advance when you have thought about it! Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xi holding his hand. The wrist of that hand was wrapped around the bracelet he had given him. He turned his face back and smiled: Yes, but you have to continue to improve your grades. Only then will there be more choices. Tao Xi was stunned, and immediately nodded and said: No problem, Ill definitely do better next time! Then Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe put a stack of papers that he had taken out of his school bag on his desk, and said to him, This is another midterm reward. Give it to me when you finish it. Tao Xi was dumbfounded. Could it be that Lin Qinhe promised to give him three midterm rewards in wholesale? He took a deep breath, clenched his fist and said, Okay! No problem! Isnt it just the paper? I can definitely finish it! Without saying anything, Tao Xi began to write papers with a pen. Being able to go to the same university as Lin Qinhe made his whole heart fly, as if soaked in a soft bubble, and when he thought of it, he was so happy that he wanted to spit out bubbles too. He buried his head in writing the papers, writing a question and looking at the turquoise stone on his right wrist for a few seconds, and then starting to do the paper again after a few seconds. After repeatedly being distracted, a sudden burst of happiness came to his mind. Tao Xi suddenly turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe who was reading a book, squinted his eyes and asked, Since you dont know my ranking, how come you still have a gift for me? Lin Qinhes hand flipping through the book paused, and after a few seconds of silence, he said flatly: Even if you didnt get in, I still want to give it to you. Tao Xi was startled, and his ears began to redden uncontrollably. He uttered an Oh, quickly lowered his head, and began to write the paper for a while, then watching the turquoise for a few seconds. But the heartbeat seemed to be more irregular. ______________________ T/N: LQH actually heard it when TX said his birthday is on Christmas! óȥˮ C sth that can not be retrieved from this meme: ֽ (lit. Face is like golden paper) to describe an angry look. His face turns yellow like golden paper. CH 34 Tao Xi didnt know that his achievements had caused a stir in Qingshui County. The principal of Qingshui No.1 High School excitedly pulled a banner of warm celebration and hung it on the school gate. Some students who had a negative attitude towards the live class were inspired to start attending classes seriously, and all the students were devoted to live class study, keeping exactly the same learning pace as Wenhua No.1 High School. While the principal had seen the glorious future of education in Qingshui County, Tao Xi was very confused about his own romantic future. Since knowing that Qiao Yitang and Lin Qinhe knew each other, Tao Xi did not dare to seek her out to continue asking questions about how to chase people. But he remembered that Qiao Yitang had told him that once he found out that the person he liked might like him too, he could find a time to confess his feelings. As a result, he was dizzy every day in the uncertain ambiguity, swaying between he seemed to like me and he didnt seem to like me. Secret love might be like this, sometimes bright, sometimes dark, sometimes sunny and sometimes rainy. Tao Xi did not go to Qiao Yitang, but Qiao Yitang took the initiative to find the door. Qiao Yitang found the classroom and called Tao Xi out to the back door of the second grade classroom. When she saw Lin Qinhe in the last row looking at her, she pulled Tao Xi a little farther away and told him about a charity art exhibition. On Sunday, the Wenhua Art Museum would hold a large-scale charity painting exhibition, and Qiao Henian, as the former chairman of the Wenhua Calligraphy and Painting Association, was naturally invited to participate. The old man ignored the organizers naysayers and insisted on securing two booths for his granddaughter and only student, although the location was not very good Dont be embarrassed. Its affirmation to be slammed by a professional painter. Just join in the fun. I think you can hand in the oil painting you finished last time. It fits the theme of this charity exhibition. While talking, Qiao Yitang glanced at the turquoise stone on Tao Xis wrist and smiled meaningfully. She grew up not knowing how many small and large painting exhibitions she had participated in, and had long been accustomed to them, but this charity exhibition was indeed a rare opportunity. Many young painters had scrambled to show their paintings, and even if they could not make a name for themselves, they could take the opportunity to meet more people. Tao Xi agreed after thinking about it. He was not interested in making a name for himself or meeting people, but he heard that the proceeds from the sale of paintings at this exhibition would be used as charitable donations for school in mountains, which he found very meaningful. After confirming to participate in the exhibition, the first thing Tao Xi did was to go back to the classroom to find Lin Qinhe. He wanted to invite Lin Qinhe to the exhibition to see his paintings. But when he really arrived in front of Lin Qinhe, he was inevitably a little nervous and rushed. He lay on his desk with his hands under his chin, looking at Lin Qinhe eagerly and asking: Do you have time on Sunday afternoon? He did not open his mouth to invite, afraid that he was directly rejected. Lin Qinhe said, I have something on Sunday. On Sunday, his cousin Lin Jixuan left her son Tang Nan to him, and she and her husband went on vacation. He missed it last time, this time it was not good to cancel it again. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis bright and dark eyes and asked, Why are you asking this question? Tao Xi hurriedly shook his head and said, Nothing, just asking. Then he looked down and took out the textbook for the next class from the drawer. Since Lin Qinhe had something to do then forget it, there was nothing good about his paintings anyway. He put the textbook on the desk, spread it out and looked down absent-mindedly. Although he said to himself that it was nothing, he couldnt help but be a little disappointed. As soon as the club activities ended on Sunday, Qiao Yitang ran back to his grandfathers house with Tao Xi to make preparations. Tao Xi thought Qiao Yitang was going to prepare for the painting exhibition, but it turned out that the lady was going to put on makeup and dress up, so he was waiting boringly in the living room and teased Qiao Henians new parrot. That parrot probably learned from Qiao Henian, and kept calling out: Stinky girl! Falling in love again! Falling in love again! Tao Xi was happy, fed the parrot some food, and the parrot squawked more happily. It was half an hour before Qiao Yitang came downstairs wearing a small dress and stepping on high heels. She made a pistol gesture to the parrot and pulled up Tao Xis arm and said, Lets go, sister will dress you up. Tao Xi was taken aback, looking at Qiao Yitangs almost unrecognizable face, his head shook quickly: No, no, you* let me go. No, you look like a junior high school student. When you stand there there is no momentum, do not worry, I wont apply makeup, just a change of clothes. Qiao Yitang kindly pushed Tao Xi into the guest room, throwing a brand new black suit and a pair of leather shoes, then closed the door. Boys were quick when changing clothes. Before Qiao Yitang and her boyfriend had finished talking on the phone, the door of the guest room opened. She looked over with her phone and was stunned. Tao Xi was messing around with his cuffs at a loss. This small suit from a major brand had a simple but well-cut style, lining the already slim persons long leg and thin waist. There was a kind of noble and youthful spirit that she couldnt say. There was also an illusion that this teenager was from a superior background. The boyfriend on the phone is pushing her, Qiao Yitang said in a good mood: Dont urge, I will find the beautiful brother in front of me to fall in love. Then snapped the phone and hung up. Tao Xi suddenly raised his head to look at Qiao Yitang when he heard the words, his expression a little frightened. Qiao Yitang laughed out loud and said in her heart that I would not dare. She looked around Tao Xi a few times and kept nodding before saying: This set of clothes is really good, its true that people look good in anything. Tao Xi was accustomed to wearing school uniforms, and asked uncomfortably, Xue jie, why do you have boys clothes? And it fit him perfectly. Qiao Yitang said in a perfunctory tone: I have a cousin who is about the same height and skinny as you. This is the clothes he bought but never wore so I lent it to you. Tao Xi nodded and said thank you, thinking that he must be more careful not to get his clothes dirty. The two people were almost ready. Qiao Yitang double-checked their makeup in the mirror, and then walked downstairs with Tao Xi. Before he reached the first floor, he heard the doorbell. Tao Xi saw that it was inconvenient for Qiao Yitang to step on high heels, so he walked quickly to open the door. The door opened, and the clear sky outside instantly spread out. Tao Xi couldnt help but squint his eyes. He saw Lin Qinhe looking at him in the sunny light. The feeling at that moment was indescribable, as if the whole world was overexposed, only the person in front of him was clear and bright. It was so bright that he couldnt move his eyes. When he looked at Lin Qinhe, he didnt know what expression he should put on his face or what words to say, only the joy and heartbeat that steamed up in his eyes and the corners of his mouth could not be hidden. In love again! In love again! In love again! The parrot suddenly started yelling. Tao Xi suddenly recovered, feeling a little embarrassed, and quickly stepped back a few steps, welcoming Lin Qinhe in. Clenching his fingers, he asked in a whisper. Dont you have something to do on Sunday? Why are you here? Lin Qinhe walked into the door, looked down at Tao Xi calmly, his eyes went from the slightly pink cheeks to the thin narrow waist, then to the slender straight legs, then fell back to the pair of slightly twinkling eyes. He said flatly. Theres something. So I came over. Tao Xi felt that Lin Qinhes gaze made him a little hot in the face, and was about to ask what the matter was, when another little boy of five or six year old rushed in at the door, fluttering his arms and bumping into Lin Qinhes legs. AwC Tang Nan covered his nose in pain, raised his head and glared at his uncle with anger. He rolled his eyes and saw Tao Xi . His eyes lit up and he wowed, Good-looking gege. Then he ran over and hugged Tao Xis leg. Tao Xi was a little at a loss, bending down to look at the little boy on his lap, neither hugging nor driving him away. Qiao Yitang stepped on high heels and saw this scene, laughed and said, Oh, the little one and the big one are just the same. Lin Qinhe took a look at Qiao Yitang. Picking up Tang Nans arm and pulling him from Tao Xis leg, he threw him aside and said to Tao Xi, This is my nephew. It may be a bit annoying, sorry. Tang Nan was furious, and hurriedly blinked at Tao Xi and said, Gege, dont listen to uncles nonsense, Im not annoying at all. Tao Xi couldnt help but smile when he looked at the little one and the big one. Qiao Yitang said happily, Nan Nan, this is your uncles classmate. Dont mess up the seniority. Tang Nan didnt like this big sister who always likes to rub his face, and didnt understand the seniority. He just wanted to lean over to Tao Xi, shouting gege. But his uncle Lin Qinhe always carried him away with one hand before he could hug his legs. Are you going to the art exhibition with us? Tao Xi asked Lin Qinhe with a smile on his lips, his eyes flashing with uncontrollable joy. His secret love suddenly turned clear after a few days of rain, and the sky burst. It was almost certain that Lin Qinhe liked him. Lin Qinhe lifted Tang Nan away again, nodded and said, Take him to the exhibition to cultivate his artistic cells. Tang Nan was held by one arm and finally woke up: Uncle, you lied to me again? Where is the arcade? Qiao Yitang rubbed Tang Nans face and said with affection, Nan Nan, you are still too young. Tang Nan walked out of the gate in despair and went to sit in the garden, sulking. Qiao Yitang was about to say lets go when she suddenly remembered that she had forgotten her perfume, and after a few words, she walked upstairs again. Only Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe were left in the living room, and a parrot that finally closed its mouth. The atmosphere suddenly calmed down, as quiet as a soft and dense pool of water. Tao Xis previous calmness ran clean. He glanced at Lin Qinhe at first, then suddenly averted his gaze, but didnt know where to put his gaze, so he lowered his head and fiddled with the cufflinks he hadnt buttoned just now. Come here. Lin Qinhe said to him suddenly. Tao Xis heart jumped, maybe it was too quiet, but he actually felt that Lin Qinhes voice was lower than usual, which made him a little itchy. He bowed his head and walked to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe stretched out his hand to hold his wrist, lifted it up, and started to button the shiny cufflinks slowly, the cufflinks flickering in the flick of his fingertips. Tao Xi breathed very lightly, staring at the button and Lin Qinhes slender finger, the tips of his ears were inexplicably hot. After the button was fastened, Tao Xi actually felt a sense of relief, and the agitated heart calmed a little bit. He raised his head and said softly to Lin Qinhe, Thank you. Lin Qinhe looked at him. His gaze slowly moved down and then fell on the side of his neck. He whispered to him: Turn around. Tao Xi was startled, and turned back obediently to Lin Qinhe. Then he felt a hand smoothing his shirt collar, and he obediently bowed his neck and lowered his head slightly, exposing the back of his neck and collar in full. The old room was so quiet that you could hear the sound of fingertips rubbing the fabric of the collar, but the hand suddenly touched the weak and sensitive skin of the back of his neck gently between movements. Tao Xi couldnt help but tremble. Obviously he couldnt see it, but he actually felt inexplicably as if a line of sight was actually falling on the back of his neck. This feeling made his cheeks hot irresistibly. The pulse on the wrist was beating, the heart in the chest was beating, and the arteries in the neck were beating, as if the whole world was beating incessantly. The time seems to be short and long. After finally finishing up, Tao Xi turned around and said thank you to Lin Qinhe again, but this time the voice was lower than last time. He casted his trembling gaze with nowhere to go to the corner of the living room, just to meet the parrots gaze. The parrot tilted his head to look at him, making him feel a guilty conscience. When Qiao Yitang packed her cosmetics and perfume and went downstairs, she felt that the atmosphere in the living room on the first floor was a bit strange. She first looked at Tao Xi and found that the boy, who was even more beautiful today, had wet eyes and slightly red cheeks. She suddenly looked at Lin Qinhe aside suspiciously, the old friends expression was still indifferent and calm, and there was no flaw at all. Qiao Yitang glanced at the parrot in the corner of the living room again, wishing the parrot to tell her what happened here just now. But the parrot did not understand and began to scold her at the top of its lungs. In love again! In love again! In love again! Qiao Yitang hit the parrot twice with the pistol gesture, and said to the two: Its getting late, lets take the kid Tang Nan and go! Once other people were there, Tao Xi instantly felt that he was more natural. He walked out the door with the two of them. Lin Qinhe walked into the garden and relentlessly lifted Tang Nan, who was squatting on the ground with a branch and poking in the mud. Tang Nan flapped his wings like a chicken, shouting gege help to Tao Xi. Tao Xi laughed and couldnt help but say to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe, you be gentle with the little children. Qiao Yitang sarcastically said, Will he be gentle with others? Lin Qinhe let go of Tang Nans hand and glanced at Tao Xi in silence. Tao Xi again had an inexplicable sense of weakness. CH 35 Tao Xi didnt know that his achievements had caused a stir in Qingshui County. The principal of Qingshui No.1 High School excitedly pulled a banner of warm celebration and hung it on the school gate. Some students who had a negative attitude towards the live class were inspired to start attending classes seriously, and all the students were devoted to live class study, keeping exactly the same learning pace as Wenhua No.1 High School. While the principal had seen the glorious future of education in Qingshui County, Tao Xi was very confused about his own romantic future. Since knowing that Qiao Yitang and Lin Qinhe knew each other, Tao Xi did not dare to seek her out to continue asking questions about how to chase people. But he remembered that Qiao Yitang had told him that once he found out that the person he liked might like him too, he could find a time to confess his feelings. As a result, he was dizzy every day in the uncertain ambiguity, swaying between he seemed to like me and he didnt seem to like me. Secret love might be like this, sometimes bright, sometimes dark, sometimes sunny and sometimes rainy. Tao Xi did not go to Qiao Yitang, but Qiao Yitang took the initiative to find the door. Qiao Yitang found the classroom and called Tao Xi out to the back door of the second grade classroom. When she saw Lin Qinhe in the last row looking at her, she pulled Tao Xi a little farther away and told him about a charity art exhibition. On Sunday, the Wenhua Art Museum would hold a large-scale charity painting exhibition, and Qiao Henian, as the former chairman of the Wenhua Calligraphy and Painting Association, was naturally invited to participate. The old man ignored the organizers naysayers and insisted on securing two booths for his granddaughter and only student, although the location was not very good Dont be embarrassed. Its affirmation to be slammed by a professional painter. Just join in the fun. I think you can hand in the oil painting you finished last time. It fits the theme of this charity exhibition. While talking, Qiao Yitang glanced at the turquoise stone on Tao Xis wrist and smiled meaningfully. She grew up not knowing how many small and large painting exhibitions she had participated in, and had long been accustomed to them, but this charity exhibition was indeed a rare opportunity. Many young painters had scrambled to show their paintings, and even if they could not make a name for themselves, they could take the opportunity to meet more people. Tao Xi agreed after thinking about it. He was not interested in making a name for himself or meeting people, but he heard that the proceeds from the sale of paintings at this exhibition would be used as charitable donations for school in mountains, which he found very meaningful. After confirming to participate in the exhibition, the first thing Tao Xi did was to go back to the classroom to find Lin Qinhe. He wanted to invite Lin Qinhe to the exhibition to see his paintings. But when he really arrived in front of Lin Qinhe, he was inevitably a little nervous and rushed. He lay on his desk with his hands under his chin, looking at Lin Qinhe eagerly and asking: Do you have time on Sunday afternoon? He did not open his mouth to invite, afraid that he was directly rejected. Lin Qinhe said, I have something on Sunday. On Sunday, his cousin Lin Jixuan left her son Tang Nan to him, and she and her husband went on vacation. He missed it last time, this time it was not good to cancel it again. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis bright and dark eyes and asked, Why are you asking this question? Tao Xi hurriedly shook his head and said, Nothing, just asking. Then he looked down and took out the textbook for the next class from the drawer. Since Lin Qinhe had something to do then forget it, there was nothing good about his paintings anyway. He put the textbook on the desk, spread it out and looked down absent-mindedly. Although he said to himself that it was nothing, he couldnt help but be a little disappointed. As soon as the club activities ended on Sunday, Qiao Yitang ran back to his grandfathers house with Tao Xi to make preparations. Tao Xi thought Qiao Yitang was going to prepare for the painting exhibition, but it turned out that the lady was going to put on makeup and dress up, so he was waiting boringly in the living room and teased Qiao Henians new parrot. That parrot probably learned from Qiao Henian, and kept calling out: Stinky girl! Falling in love again! Falling in love again! Tao Xi was happy, fed the parrot some food, and the parrot squawked more happily. It was half an hour before Qiao Yitang came downstairs wearing a small dress and stepping on high heels. She made a pistol gesture to the parrot and pulled up Tao Xis arm and said, Lets go, sister will dress you up. Tao Xi was taken aback, looking at Qiao Yitangs almost unrecognizable face, his head shook quickly: No, no, you* let me go. No, you look like a junior high school student. When you stand there there is no momentum, do not worry, I wont apply makeup, just a change of clothes. Qiao Yitang kindly pushed Tao Xi into the guest room, throwing a brand new black suit and a pair of leather shoes, then closed the door. Boys were quick when changing clothes. Before Qiao Yitang and her boyfriend had finished talking on the phone, the door of the guest room opened. She looked over with her phone and was stunned. Tao Xi was messing around with his cuffs at a loss. This small suit from a major brand had a simple but well-cut style, lining the already slim persons long leg and thin waist. There was a kind of noble and youthful spirit that she couldnt say. There was also an illusion that this teenager was from a superior background. The boyfriend on the phone is pushing her, Qiao Yitang said in a good mood: Dont urge, I will find the beautiful brother in front of me to fall in love. Then snapped the phone and hung up. Tao Xi suddenly raised his head to look at Qiao Yitang when he heard the words, his expression a little frightened. Qiao Yitang laughed out loud and said in her heart that I would not dare. She looked around Tao Xi a few times and kept nodding before saying: This set of clothes is really good, its true that people look good in anything. Tao Xi was accustomed to wearing school uniforms, and asked uncomfortably, Xue jie, why do you have boys clothes? And it fit him perfectly. Qiao Yitang said in a perfunctory tone: I have a cousin who is about the same height and skinny as you. This is the clothes he bought but never wore so I lent it to you. Tao Xi nodded and said thank you, thinking that he must be more careful not to get his clothes dirty. The two people were almost ready. Qiao Yitang double-checked their makeup in the mirror, and then walked downstairs with Tao Xi. Before he reached the first floor, he heard the doorbell. Tao Xi saw that it was inconvenient for Qiao Yitang to step on high heels, so he walked quickly to open the door. The door opened, and the clear sky outside instantly spread out. Tao Xi couldnt help but squint his eyes. He saw Lin Qinhe looking at him in the sunny light. The feeling at that moment was indescribable, as if the whole world was overexposed, only the person in front of him was clear and bright. It was so bright that he couldnt move his eyes. When he looked at Lin Qinhe, he didnt know what expression he should put on his face or what words to say, only the joy and heartbeat that steamed up in his eyes and the corners of his mouth could not be hidden. In love again! In love again! In love again! The parrot suddenly started yelling. Tao Xi suddenly recovered, feeling a little embarrassed, and quickly stepped back a few steps, welcoming Lin Qinhe in. Clenching his fingers, he asked in a whisper. Dont you have something to do on Sunday? Why are you here? Lin Qinhe walked into the door, looked down at Tao Xi calmly, his eyes went from the slightly pink cheeks to the thin narrow waist, then to the slender straight legs, then fell back to the pair of slightly twinkling eyes. He said flatly. Theres something. So I came over. Tao Xi felt that Lin Qinhes gaze made him a little hot in the face, and was about to ask what the matter was, when another little boy of five or six year old rushed in at the door, fluttering his arms and bumping into Lin Qinhes legs. AwC Tang Nan covered his nose in pain, raised his head and glared at his uncle with anger. He rolled his eyes and saw Tao Xi . His eyes lit up and he wowed, Good-looking gege. Then he ran over and hugged Tao Xis leg. Tao Xi was a little at a loss, bending down to look at the little boy on his lap, neither hugging nor driving him away. Qiao Yitang stepped on high heels and saw this scene, laughed and said, Oh, the little one and the big one are just the same. Lin Qinhe took a look at Qiao Yitang. Picking up Tang Nans arm and pulling him from Tao Xis leg, he threw him aside and said to Tao Xi, This is my nephew. It may be a bit annoying, sorry. Tang Nan was furious, and hurriedly blinked at Tao Xi and said, Gege, dont listen to uncles nonsense, Im not annoying at all. Tao Xi couldnt help but smile when he looked at the little one and the big one. Qiao Yitang said happily, Nan Nan, this is your uncles classmate. Dont mess up the seniority. Tang Nan didnt like this big sister who always likes to rub his face, and didnt understand the seniority. He just wanted to lean over to Tao Xi, shouting gege. But his uncle Lin Qinhe always carried him away with one hand before he could hug his legs. Are you going to the art exhibition with us? Tao Xi asked Lin Qinhe with a smile on his lips, his eyes flashing with uncontrollable joy. His secret love suddenly turned clear after a few days of rain, and the sky burst. It was almost certain that Lin Qinhe liked him. Lin Qinhe lifted Tang Nan away again, nodded and said, Take him to the exhibition to cultivate his artistic cells. Tang Nan was held by one arm and finally woke up: Uncle, you lied to me again? Where is the arcade? Qiao Yitang rubbed Tang Nans face and said with affection, Nan Nan, you are still too young. Tang Nan walked out of the gate in despair and went to sit in the garden, sulking. Qiao Yitang was about to say lets go when she suddenly remembered that she had forgotten her perfume, and after a few words, she walked upstairs again. Only Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe were left in the living room, and a parrot that finally closed its mouth. The atmosphere suddenly calmed down, as quiet as a soft and dense pool of water. Tao Xis previous calmness ran clean. He glanced at Lin Qinhe at first, then suddenly averted his gaze, but didnt know where to put his gaze, so he lowered his head and fiddled with the cufflinks he hadnt buttoned just now. Come here. Lin Qinhe said to him suddenly. Tao Xis heart jumped, maybe it was too quiet, but he actually felt that Lin Qinhes voice was lower than usual, which made him a little itchy. He bowed his head and walked to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe stretched out his hand to hold his wrist, lifted it up, and started to button the shiny cufflinks slowly, the cufflinks flickering in the flick of his fingertips. Tao Xi breathed very lightly, staring at the button and Lin Qinhes slender finger, the tips of his ears were inexplicably hot. After the button was fastened, Tao Xi actually felt a sense of relief, and the agitated heart calmed a little bit. He raised his head and said softly to Lin Qinhe, Thank you. Lin Qinhe looked at him. His gaze slowly moved down and then fell on the side of his neck. He whispered to him: Turn around. Tao Xi was startled, and turned back obediently to Lin Qinhe. Then he felt a hand smoothing his shirt collar, and he obediently bowed his neck and lowered his head slightly, exposing the back of his neck and collar in full. The old room was so quiet that you could hear the sound of fingertips rubbing the fabric of the collar, but the hand suddenly touched the weak and sensitive skin of the back of his neck gently between movements. Tao Xi couldnt help but tremble. Obviously he couldnt see it, but he actually felt inexplicably as if a line of sight was actually falling on the back of his neck. This feeling made his cheeks hot irresistibly. The pulse on the wrist was beating, the heart in the chest was beating, and the arteries in the neck were beating, as if the whole world was beating incessantly. The time seems to be short and long. After finally finishing up, Tao Xi turned around and said thank you to Lin Qinhe again, but this time the voice was lower than last time. He casted his trembling gaze with nowhere to go to the corner of the living room, just to meet the parrots gaze. The parrot tilted his head to look at him, making him feel a guilty conscience. When Qiao Yitang packed her cosmetics and perfume and went downstairs, she felt that the atmosphere in the living room on the first floor was a bit strange. She first looked at Tao Xi and found that the boy, who was even more beautiful today, had wet eyes and slightly red cheeks. She suddenly looked at Lin Qinhe aside suspiciously, the old friends expression was still indifferent and calm, and there was no flaw at all. Qiao Yitang glanced at the parrot in the corner of the living room again, wishing the parrot to tell her what happened here just now. But the parrot did not understand and began to scold her at the top of its lungs. In love again! In love again! In love again! Qiao Yitang hit the parrot twice with the pistol gesture, and said to the two: Its getting late, lets take the kid Tang Nan and go! Once other people were there, Tao Xi instantly felt that he was more natural. He walked out the door with the two of them. Lin Qinhe walked into the garden and relentlessly lifted Tang Nan, who was squatting on the ground with a branch and poking in the mud. Tang Nan flapped his wings like a chicken, shouting gege help to Tao Xi. Tao Xi laughed and couldnt help but say to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe, you be gentle with the little children. Qiao Yitang sarcastically said, Will he be gentle with others? Lin Qinhe let go of Tang Nans hand and glanced at Tao Xi in silence. Tao Xi again had an inexplicable sense of weakness. CH 36 It was almost evening when they came out of the art gallery. Qiao Yitang was going to go shopping with her friends and left first. Tang Nan had completely fallen asleep, and was stuffed into the passenger seat by Lin Qinhe and tied up with a seat belt. Tao Xi took a bag of unfinished candies and sat in the back seat of the car with Lin Qinhe. Because they were worried about waking up Tang Nan, no one in the car spoke, only the childs shallow breathing after falling asleep could be heard. This quiet atmosphere was a bit torturous for Tao Xi, because once it calmed down, the presence of the person next to him would be so obvious that it couldnt be ignored. He wanted to talk to Lin Qinhe, telling him that he had his first painting that was really sold, that he had met many seniors and friends at the exhibition, that he had thought about continuing to paint in the future, and that he intended to give him an absolutely unique painting Tao Xi quietly glanced aside again and saw Lin Qinhe looking down at his phone. He withdrew his gaze and turned his head to look out the window, intending to let his attention be diverted away to the scenery outside the window, but the phone held in his hand suddenly vibrated, and even his heart abruptly vibrated. Tao Xi hurriedly lowered his head to look at his phone and found that it was Lin Qinhe who had sent a message. Moon1: What do you want to say? Tao Xis heart jumped and couldnt help but look aside, Lin Qinhe only looked down at the phone screen, not at him. He also lowered his head and started typing on the screen, typing up slowly all the words he wanted to say just now, but in the end he deleted all the words. Then he picked the sentence that he wanted to say the most among those surging words. Tao Xi: Lin Qinhe, I want to give you a painting. In the art gallery, when Lin Qinhe promised to see his first painting exhibition in his life in the future, he made a decision in his heart. A decision that he had been wavering for a long time, but was suddenly full of courage today. He breathed lightly and stared at the screen firmly, not letting his eyes wander to the side for a minute, but the fingertips pressed on the screen were hot, and he was still unconsciously following the movements of the person beside him with the corner of his eyes. Moon: When will it be given to me? He didnt ask what the painting was, nor why, just when it would be given to him. Tao Xi took a deep breath. He somehow felt that Lin Qinhe seemed to understand what he meant by these words. This guess made his entire face hot. In the enthusiasm that rose and floated everywhere, he used his hot fingertips to input slowly on the screen again. Tao Xi: Ill give it to you when I finish painting. Moon: Okay, Ill wait for you. Ill wait for you. Tao Xis fingers on the screen curled up unconsciously. He heard his heartbeat suddenly become light and fast, like a late afternoon shower in the middle of summer, and the dense feet of the rain steamed up the hot white vapor all over the ground, smothering the brain with wakefulness and confusion. After the WeChat conversation ended, the car fell silent again. Occasionally, there was the sound of the childs sleep talking, but Tao Xi felt that it was more difficult than before. This complicated feeling continued into every class at school. Tao Xi tried to face Lin Qinhe as usual, but since he made that decision, he felt like he was hung in the air by a hydrogen balloon. A word from Lin Qinhe, a glance, or even a faintly raised eyebrow made him feel alarmed and uneasy for the self that was about to reach a critical point. Only when he returned to his dorm room could he be completely at ease to prepare for his decision. Wow, Xi da, do you draw so many paintings to give away or participate in the competition? Pan Yan had been curious for many days. In the past, Tao Xi went back to the bedroom every day to do homework or practice listening. But for the past week, Tao Xi had been painting in front of the easel every night. He had painted many pictures, and each one was different. But all the paintings were the same thing, the moon. The invisible new moon on the first day of the lunar month, the crescent moon on the third and fourth day, the first quarter moon on the seventh and eighth day, the full moon on the fifteenth and sixteenth days, and the last quarter moon on the twenty-third day It seemed that a whole 30-day lunar phase of the lunar month would be drawn. And the moon in each painting was in a different place, the quiet forest valley with peach blossoms and streams, the turquoise ocean with rising tides, the thousands of rows of crisscrossing peaks, the neon city with sparkling fireworks Tao Xi was focusing on painting, and after a long time, he just gave a perfunctory reason. What he wanted to give to Lin Qinhe was not a simple painting, but the moon of the whole world, no matter if it was round or missing.2 But after all, there were thirty paintings, and Tao Xi worked overtime every day to paint them, but he had only painted less than half of them in a week or so. Fortunately, Qiao Yitang had given him the key to the art room in Qiushi Building, so he could continue to draw in the art room even during his lunch break. One day at noon, he returned to the classroom from the studio and saw Lin Qinhe was already sitting in his seat. He paused his steps and returned to his seat calmly. Just as soon as he picked up the pen, Lin Qinhe asked him: Where have you been at noon these days? The voice was heavy and seemed a little unpleasant. Tao Xis heart tightened with a sense of guilty conscience of being caught. He looked at Lin Qinhe and hesitated for a few seconds before telling the truth frankly: Paint a picture for you in the studio. Lin Qinhe was startled, as if he hadnt expected the answer. He quickly retracted his gaze and lowered his eyes with a humble hum. Tao Xi also lowered his eyes and quietly stretched out his left hand to pinch his earlobe. It was such an airtight atmosphere that made people flustered and confused. Quietly writing the paper, Tao Xi heard Lin Qinhe suddenly said to him: I will go to the province to train and compete the day after tomorrow. Tao Xi was taken aback. He turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, and asked anxiously: How long is the training? Lin Qinhe said: Two weeks. Tao Xi didnt know whether he wanted to breathe a sigh of relief or not. He should have finished his painting in two weeks, but he couldnt see Lin Qinhe for two weeks Obviously, the person had not left yet, and he had already started thinking about this person. Tao Xi felt that he was very useless. He said to Lin Qinhe, Then I will wait for you to come back. Lin Qinhe looked at him, was silent for a while, and said in a low voice, You have these two weeks Tao Xi hurriedly raised two fingers, nodded and promised: I will definitely study hard! Then he heard Lin Qinhe laugh very low and said to him, I mean, what about the comic for these two weeks, President of Xiao Tao Comic Club? Tao Xi was dumbfounded. Hearing Lin Qinhe call him that for the first time, his face couldnt help but get a little hot, and he stammered, Pres, President will draw two weeks worth of copies and give them to you together tomorrow night. Lin Qinhe wanted to say that he could just take a picture after finished drawing it and send it to him with his phone, but after thinking about it, he finally said, Okay. There was another awkward silence, and the two looked at each other before each bowed their heads to do their own thing. Tao Xi stared at the math problem in front of him absently. After about two minutes, he suddenly turned to Lin Qinhe and said nonchalantly: Ill give you the painting the day you come back. Because he was too nervous, he spoke very fast, so fast that he felt he couldnt quite hear it. But Lin Qinhe seemed to have heard him and seemed to know what he meant, and after a two-second pause, he said to him. Okay, Im looking forward to it. Tao Xi thought that it must be because Lin Qinhe was so soft at this moment that he couldnt help but get an inch. He stared at Lin Qinhe, narrowed his eyes and said. Then you are not allowed to dislike my paintings. He had never said willful words like not allowed or must not, but at this moment he really wanted to be willful to Lin Qinhe. He even wanted to speak more willfully, not allowed to dislike me. Lin Qinhe looked into his eyes said with a low voice: I must like it. Serious and determined. Tao Xis breathing was stagnant, and he heard a very light burst sound in his brain, like blue fireworks blooming in the distant ocean, trance and blurred. He lowered his gaze in a panic, looked down at his homework book, and said in a low voice, Thats the deal. In the past two days Tao Xi worked overtime to come up with fourteen more comics, each one was put into a small envelope with the dates for the next two weeks written on it. After night study the next day, Tao Xi gave the fourteen envelopes to Lin Qinhe together and repeatedly instructed, Make sure to open them only on this day! Like a doctor who prescribed medicine to patients. Lin Qinhe put the envelope in the bag, got up and asked him, What if I open it in advance? Tao Xi was stunned. He grabbed Lin Qinhes school bag and looked up at Lin Qinhe, saying: No what if, just cannot. Lin Qinhe looked down at him, the corners of his lips lifted slightly: Okay, got it. Tao Xi felt that Lin Qinhes tone was a bit like coaxing a child. He let go of his grip on his school bag. He watched Lin Qinhe turn around and walk towards the door, and suddenly realized that he wouldnt see this person for the next two weeks starting tomorrow. What to do. He missed him so much now, so much, so much. Tao Xi shouted before he could react: Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe quickly stopped and turned around, looking at him who was two steps away. Tao Xi, however, did not know what he was going to say, his head buzzing, racking his brains, and said. You, your training camp, I wish you Before the word the best was uttered, Lin Qinhe suddenly grabbed his wrist and pulled him to his side. Send me to the school gate, okay? Lin Qinhe whispered in his ear. At the distance of the sudden approach, the warm breath blowing in the ear, and the low voice pulsing on the eardrum, Tao Xi only felt his whole face filled with blood, his heart about to jump out of his chest. Okay. It took him a long time to find a voice to answer. It was almost November at this time, and the night was as cool as water. Tao Xi walked beside Lin Qinhe. Both of them didnt go fast, and they didnt say anything tacitly. Tao Xi looked up at the night sky. The night wasnt clear and there was no moon. He turned his head and looked at the people next to him. It doesnt matter, this is my moon, he thought. The moon that was always there. Lin Qinhe turned his face to look back at him, Tao Xi quickly lowered his eyes. Walking all the way to the school gate, Tao Xi could no longer go outside. He saw that Chen Ting was already waiting not far outside the gate. No matter how reluctant he was, he tried to suppress it, and said to Lin Qinhe with a smile: Jiayou for the training. You will definitely get good results in the competitions. Lin Qinhe looked down and said to him, Eat well at school, study well, and dont stay up too late. Tao Xi bent his eyes and nodded, I will, and so will you. Lin Qinhe silently looked at him for a while, and whispered: Then Im leaving. The smile on Tao Xis face faded a little, and he was also silent for a while before he raised his smile again and said, See you in two weeks! Lin Qinhe gave a hum, he looked at the person in front of him, endured it for a long time, and finally couldnt help but raise his hand and rubbed his soft hair, then quickly turned and left. _________________ T/N: LQH gave TX so much practice papers that the first thing he thought upon him leaving is to study hard :)))) in English reference to Բȱ C describes the phase of the moon and often used as metaphor, referring to the impermanence of life and the ups and downs of life Cloudy () and sunny (): The moon is dim when it is cloudy at night and bright when it is sunny. Round (Բ) and missing (ȱ): Refers to the full moon around 15 in the lunar calendar. The beginning of the month is the crescent, so it is missing. CH 37 For the next two weeks, in the eyes of others, Tao Xi continued to study and attend classes as usual during the day, and returned to his dormitory at night to draw, as if nothing was different. But only he himself knew that he would stare at the empty seat next to him in a daze, and when he couldnt solve a problem, he would subconsciously ask the other side, only to find that there was no one next to him. That kind of sudden loss, like a pebble, silently fell into the deep well, and only echoes of thoughts could be heard. Sometimes he would suddenly come up with a terrible and absurd idea, could it be that he never knew Lin Qinhe at all? Could it be that he never entered Lin Qinhes world? But the next second the red string and turquoise on his wrist would remind him that he was in Lin Qinhes world. He had never found himself so insecure. Fortunately, he had a mobile phone. At night, he would send Lin Qinhe questions, asking for solutions, and most of the time Lin Qinhe would reply to him in time, which made him feel much less insecure. Another thing that made him feel at ease was that Lin Qinhe would post some photos in his Moments every day. The twilight in the evening, the birds on the branches, the dark green blackboard reflecting the sunlight It was his life through the lens. Tao Xi liked every single one of them, but he was wondering why no other classmates ever liked Lin Qinhes posts. Maybe it was because no one else had added Lin Qinhes WeChat, a guess that he couldnt help but be happy about. One day in the second week, Zhou Qiang announced that there would be a parent-teacher meeting on Friday afternoon, and every students parents would have to come. The class was full of sorrows, but Tao Xi did not respond because he had no parents to come. He had just finished painting the thirty moons, and spent a lot of money to bind them into a collection of paintings. In the past two days, he was planning another important thing. Love letter. Tao Xi was good at writing essays, but he felt it was bad when writing love letters. He tore up several copies, and went to the library to search around, which allowed him to find an old Love Story Collection. He hid under the quilt and flashed a flashlight to read the book. The more he read, the hotter his face became. He thought this was too sappy, but finally he picked a few sentences and wrote them in the first few love letters that he didnt know which one it was. The class did a big cleanup on Friday afternoon in anticipation of the parent-teacher conference, and Tao Xi specially wiped Lin Qinhes desk and chairs several times so that his parents could easily sit when they came over. Parents of Class 1s students arrived one by one, chatting with their children in the classroom or in the hallway, some mothers thoughtfully bringing snacks for their children, while some fathers were criticizing their children for disobedience. Tao Xi packed up his things alone and was just about to leave the classroom to find a place to write his love letter when he saw Luo Zhengyin walking in from the back door with her handbag. At that moment he felt a sudden panic and weakness, he thought, This is Lin Qinhes mother, and he is going to confess to her son. Tao Xi immediately shouted politely to Luo Zhengyin, Hello, auntie! So respectful that he was on the verge of bowing. Luo Zhengyin was stunned. She recognized this nervous-looking boy as Lin Qinhes tablemate who came to the hospital last time. He seemed to be named Tao Xi. She smiled politely and said hello. Tao Xi diligently helped Luo Zhengyin pull out Lin Qinhes chair, which he had wiped with care, trying to make a good impression on Luo Zhengyin. Luo Zhengyin said thank you and then sat down, and after a few polite answers to Tao Xi, she didnt speak any more. Soon Bi Chengfeis father, Bi Qian, director of the Department of Neurosurgery of Hannan Hospital, also came in. He and Luo Zhengyin had often attended parent-teacher meetings together since their children were in middle school, so they were familiar with each other and started talking. Tao Xi left wittily. As soon as he left the classroom, he saw Yang Zhengming and Yang Duole walking to Class 2. The two seemed to have just had a conflict. Yang Duole puffed out angrily, Yang Zhengming had a helpless smile on his face, and his hands held a bottle of Yakult that Yang Duole hadnt finished drinking. Tao Xi lowered his eyelashes and quickly turned and walked in the other direction. After searching for a long time, he found a place where no one was there, and then began to seriously transcribe the love letter one last time. He wrote very slowly to ensure that every word was neat and beautiful. It took him forty minutes to write a one-page love letter. After writing it, he carefully put it in the envelope. The parents meeting would take a long time, Tao Xi wandered aimlessly around the playground with an envelope containing love letters, wondering how to give Lin Qinhe the painting collection and love letter when he came back tomorrow. The more he thought about it, the more nervous he was, and his stomach started to cramp. But all the tension couldnt be compared to the joy of Lin Qinhe coming back tomorrow. He was so happy that he couldnt even hold down the corners of his mouth. When the time was almost up, Tao Xi started to walk to the classroom, he deliberately avoided Class 2 and went up the other side of the stairs, bumping into Bi Chengfei who had just finished playing basketball. The two of them walked to Class 1 together. At this time, the parent-teacher meeting had just finished and some parents were chatting in the corridor. Bi Chengfei saw his dad talking to Lin Qinhes mother at a glance. Dad! Aunt Luo! Bi Chengfei took Tao Xi to greet the two people. What are you talking to Aunt Luo? You wont be saying bad things about me again, right! Tao Xi also politely greeted the two of them. He thought he should leave here, so as to not disturb other peoples father and son getting along. However, when he was about to turn around, he suddenly heard Bi Chengfeis father say: What can we talk about? Were just worried about your application to American universities. Look at Qinhe, he got his TOEFL exam long ago and his score is so high, hes going to interview with some top 10 universities at the end of the year. When will you sign up for the TOEFL test? Tao Xi was suffocated, and suddenly squeezed the envelope containing a love letter in his hand. That person is xueshen. You dont always compare xueshen with me, okay? Bi Chengfei took the tissue from his fathers hand to wipe the sweat on his face and said discontentedly. Luo Zhengyin smiled and said, There is no need to rush, there is still more than a year to prepare, Qinhe only started to prepare last year. Auntie, is Lin Qinhe going to the United States for college? Luo Zhengyin heard Tao Xi, who hadnt spoken, ask her as soon as the words left her mouth. She looked over and was slightly stunned. She saw the boy looking at her with those red eyes that looked like Fang Sui, his face was tense, as if he was about to be crying. She suppressed the inexplicable panic in her heart, and said: Yes, this is planned by Qinhe very early and several promising universities have already been selected. But TaoXi didnt want to believe it. He clenched his envelope hard, his throat vibrated violently and he opened his mouth. After working hard for a long time, he made a dumb voice and asked Luo Zhengyin: Lin Qinhe, will he go to the United States to study with Yang Duole? Bi Qian felt that the boy was a little strange, but he didnt say anything. Bi Chengfei looked at Tao Xi worriedly. Tao Xi clenched his teeth and stared at Luo Zhengyin with a paranoid and fragile gaze, like a dying man waiting for the last question of judgment. Finally, Luo Zhengyin hesitantly pronounced the result: Yes, he and Lele will go to school in the United States together after graduation, this is what our two families discussed a long time ago. Their families had discussed it well. What about me? Tao Xi bit his inner lip hard until the sharp pain spread in his mouth and tasted the smell of blood. He pulled the corners of his mouth and smiled, trying his best to maintain his politeness in front of Luo Zhengyin, and said to her: Thank you, auntie, I got it. Then he turned around and walked away quickly, walking faster and faster, and finally simply ran. He didnt know where he was going, the school was so big, but there seemed to be no place to hold his anger and sadness. He was uncontrollably angry, too angry, so angry that his vision began to blur. He was angry at how Lin Qinhe could lie to him? How could he go to school in the United States with Yang Duo Le? Then what was he who had worked so hard for so long? Was it a joke? Tao Xi didnt know when he walked to the entrance of the concert hall on the top floor of Qiushi Building. Lin Qinhe once played for him a piano music that only he could hear. Without looking at the door, he walked quickly towards the trash can in the corner. He tore the love letter in the envelope, which he had written many times, and threw it into the trash can. But he didnt feel much better after tearing it up. He looked at the pieces, as if watching his heart being mashed and torn apart. Tao Xi squatted down, hugging his legs and burying his face in his knees. He still couldnt help but find reasons for Lin Qinhe lying to him. Perhaps Lin Qinhe just told him a white lie. Lin Qinhe hoped that he would be admitted to the best university in China and had a good life. But Lin Qinhe would not have him in his life. But, he thought. I should have been in your life. The person who grew up with you should have been me. I have nothing left, no mother, no father, no favoritism from relatives. I was robbed of everything by Yang Duole. I have worked so hard, but why cant I even go to the same university as you? Bi Chengfei was going to go after Tao Xi to ask him what happened, but his dad pulled him back: I asked Teacher Zhou to talk to us in the office. Dont leave. Dad, why are you looking for the class teacher again! Bi Chengfei hung his head in despair, he had to follow his dad towards the office. After thinking about it on the way, he took out his mobile phone and sent Lin Qinhe a WeChat. After the father and son left, Luo Zhengyin still hadnt come back to her senses. The eyes of Tao Xi when he questioned her just now came to her mind over and over again. A long time ago, Fang Sui had also asked her a question with red eyes like that. Luo Zhengyin stretched out his hand and squeezed his eyebrows, planning to go to Class 2 to see Yang Duole, but suddenly she saw Lin Qinhe walk over quickly. Qinhe? Why did you come back early? Luo Zhengyin looked at her son in surprise. He hadnt had time to change into his school uniform, obviously he had just arrived at school. Did you just say something to Tao Xi? Lin Qinhe asked Luo Zhengyin in a deep voice, frowning deeply. Luo Zhengyin was stunned. She felt that Lin Qinhe was too harsh on her. She frowned and said, I just talked with Dr. Bi about your application for an American school. At that time, Tao Xi was there, and suddenly asked me if you wanted to study in the United States with Lele. I said yes, he seemed She was about to continue speaking, but found that Lin Qinhes expression changed abruptly. She had never seen Lin Qinhe reveal that kind of expression, as if his most beloved thing was hurt by someone, and she seemed to be the culprit. When Luo Zhengyin saw Lin Qinhe turn around to leave, she pulled him back and asked, Whats wrong? Did you come back early because there was something wrong with the training? Lin Qinhe looked at her unaware mother, and could only carve his nails into his palm as hard as he could, as if this could ease some kind of pain in his heart. Why did he come back early? Because he knew that there would be a parent-teacher meeting today, and everyone would have their parents coming over, but one of them didnt. That person would be sad. And he would feel distressed. But he still made him sadder. In the end, Lin Qinhe didnt answer Luo Zhengyins question, turned and left quickly. _____________________ The author has something to say: Im pinching my fingers, the next chapter will be together But I am very busy recently, the update may not be stable 555 CH 38 Student, what are you doing here alone? Tao Xi looked up and saw an older man in his forties wearing a security uniform looking at him. He slowly got up from the ground, and almost fell the moment he got up because his feet were numb. Through the twilight outside the window, the security guard was stunned seeing Tao Xis expression He wondered what kind of grievance this student might have just suffered that he wanted to come to the unmanned concert hall to vent his emotions, so he asked with concern: Are you a student of the orchestra? You dont have your key? Tao Xi was silent for a moment before he nodded his head. Its okay, Ill open the door for you. The security guard said while walking towards the entrance of the concert hall with a bunch of keys. Seeing that Tao Xi was still standing still next to the trash can, he urged suspiciously, Why dont you come over? Tao Xi walked towards the entrance of the concert hall. His steps were a little messy, and his fingers were tightly clenched together. He saw that the familiar door was opened. In the huge empty concert hall, the red-golden twilight spread through the floor-to-ceiling long windows, burning in silence on the black piano in the center of the room. Dont practice piano inside for too long, just remember to close the door when you leave. The security guard reminded him. He turned his head to find that the student next to him seemed even sadder the moment the door opened. He couldnt say anything, so he said a few more words. Tao Xi thanked the security guard and stood still at the door for a while before pulling a craggy shadow towards the black piano in the twilight. He sat down on the piano chair, opened the lid, and the twilight flashed over the black and white keys, waiting for someone to play the notes. He couldnt help thinking of that evening, it was in the same twilight. Lin Qinhe held his wrist and took him here, turned his back to the concert hall and asked him: Can you hold your tears here? Then he played a song Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence that only he could hear. Tao Xi stared at the piano keys in front of him, recalling the mans gestures when he played. He stretched out his hands and wanted to play, but he didnt know how to play. One hand was hanging above the keys. Finally he pressed a white key on the keys at random, and the lone note rang out abruptly in the empty concert hall. He recalled a long time ago, he hid outside the door and saw Lin Qinhe sitting in front of this piano playing, not far from Yang Duole who was playing the cello and other members of the symphony orchestra playing various instruments. They looked at ease, as if they were born to sit in a glorious concert hall in fancy clothes. At that time, he looked at those people, like peeping into another glamorous world under the ground, full of jealousy and unwillingness. Tao Xi took a deep breath and put his hand on the piano lid, trying to close it. He thought he finally understood that some things that had been lost and missed, even if they were recovered later, they were not what they should have been. Just like even if he recognized his relatives, he could never go back to his childhood to learn an instrument, get the love of his relatives, and have the time growing up with Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi wanted to get up and leave, but suddenly heard the sound of the door being opened from behind. He suddenly withdrew his hand on his knee and clenched it, his upper body stiffened, his heart had a suspicion that he could not believe, but he did not look back, and could only hear the familiar sound of footsteps approaching him. Soon the person walked to the piano and sat down beside him. After a brief silence, the person sitting next to him stretched out his beautiful fingers and played a short familiar note on the keyboard. It was the same song, Tao Xi pursed his lips, still did not look to the side. Lin Qinhe asked him in a low voice, Want to play the piano? Tao Xi laughed and suddenly looked at Lin Qinhe. He lashed out: Im not like you guys who grew up with the best education and can learn everything, how can I play the piano? His tone was extremely bad, his eyes were full of sarcasm and anger, but he didnt know that there were still tears on his face. The eyelashes on the reddish and moist eyes were still sticking, and looking at it only made people feel aggrieved. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xi, his eyes darkened for a moment. He suddenly remembered that this person was like this when he first came to Wenhua No. 1 High School, covered in thorns. When did he become obedient in front of him? You can play as you like, Ill accompany you. Lin Qinhes voice was calm, without a trace of displeasure. Tao Xi was stunned and felt his anger was half extinguished by cold water. He pursed his lips and stretched out his hands to play on the keys in an unruly manner, making a series of weird piano sounds. Lin Qinhe quickly stretched out his fingers and matched the tune he played on the other side of the keyboard, miraculously transforming the chaotic sound of the piano into a melody that could be heard. This was an odd four-handed combination, a person who did not know how to play the piano at all and a person who was very good at the piano. Like his breath, Tao Xi ten fingers flying deliberately played faster and more chaotic, but Lin Qinhe always tried to cooperate with him, as if no matter what he played, in Lin Qinhe hands. it would become the most beautiful music in the world. Until Tao Xis ten fingers that pressed together heavily on the keys did not move, emitting an extremely uncoordinated and unpleasant piano sound. He turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, with his chin slightly raised, with some provocation and willfulness. Lin Qinhe looked at him and was not angry. There was some indulgent helplessness in his eyes, and he sighed gently: Theres nothing I can do if youre like this. TaoXi didnt hold back a smile, but he quickly restrained his smile, still having an angry expression on his face. He lowered his head and did not speak. Lin Qinhe accompanied him in silence for a while, only the more and more intense red twilight outside the floor-to-ceiling windows silently staining the two sitting side by side in front of the piano. Suddenly, Tao Xi heard Lin Qinhe ask him in a low voice: You have nothing to tell me, or ask me? The tone of voice was so soft, as if he was coaxing him to talk. Tao Xi looked down at the piano keys that were dyed orange in front of him, and his voice was still very impulsive: Have, let me tell you, I particularly hate Lin Qinhe now. The tone was a bit childish, and he thought Lin Qinhe might get angry when he heard it, but he heard Lin Qinhe calmly reply. Then I hate him too. Tao Xi was startled, and subconsciously asked, Why? What kind of person said they hate themselves when someone else said they hated them? Not to mention, this person was Lin Qinhe, perfect in every way. Because he makes you unhappy. Lin Qinhe looked down at him and said in a low voice. Tao Xis eyelashes trembled fiercely, and all the anger, sadness, grievanceall kinds of emotions rushed into the heart together, sore and swollen, but there was no way to dispel. He abruptly stood up from the piano chair, as if he had had enough of this heart being suspended up and down, he wanted to completely vent the emotions that had been accumulating and tumbling in his heart for a long time. He clenched his fists and shouted at Lin Qinhe : Lin Qinhe, do you play me like a fool? You did it deliberately. You deliberately asked me to surround you every day. You asked me to make friends, but if I have a better relationship with others, you show me a face and neglect me deliberately! You lied to me about going to college with me, but behind my back, you applied to universities in the States with Yang Duole! They all say you are good, good looking, good grades and everything, but only I know that you are not good at all! He was out of breath after yelling, but his heart was suddenly empty, with nothing left but a void, obviously scolding someone else, but in the end it was his own self who felt uncomfortable. Tao Xi watched with red eyes as Lin Qinhe closed the piano cover and stood up. He looked at him, the gentleness of playing the piano when patiently coaxing him seemed to be an illusion, his eyes suppressed a deeper darkness in the blood-red twilight, and his voice said dumbly: Yes, Im not good at all. Before Tao Xi could react, he was dragged over. The eyes darkened and the back of the neck was firmly clasped by a hand. He was forced to fold his neck and tilted his head, and then his lips were covered with a layer of softness. The brain was instantly blank, he subconsciously closed his eyes and held his breath, forgetting everything, allowing the person to kiss himself somewhat eagerly and licking his lips. The skin of the nape of the neck was rubbed and kneaded vigorously by the thinly callused fingers, causing a slight tingling. Tao Xis eyelashes quivered, his heart beating sharply and violently, and his chest was rising and falling more and more rapidly. He hadnt been kissed before, and he didnt even open his mouth. Only the face was frighteningly hot and his legs were getting softer and weaker, unconsciously leaning on Lin Qin This action seemed to please the other party. Lin Qinhe pressed his waist to his arms, the kiss became softer, and then he gently kissed the corner of his mouth, before saying to him in a dumb voice. Look, I kissed you without your permission, its not good at all. Lin Qinhe let go of him. He slowly opened his eyes in a dazzling daze, his eyes glowing with moist water, and his breathing was still a bit short. Looking at the blurry person in front of him, he muttered like a dream: You, what do you mean? He subconsciously pursed his moist lips. There were only traces of the fireworks flashing in his head, but he still couldnt believe that the fireworks really shone for him. Lin Qinhe lowered his eyes, his gaze fell on the two red lips that he had kissed, only using his fingers to gently rub the delicate skin at the corners of his lips, and said slowly: Meaning, I like you, want to be good to you, want to spend a good life with you. Not only the university, from now to a long time in the future, you must be by my side, and youre not allowed to go anywhere. Tao Xi seemed to hear clearly, and at the same time he didnt seem to hear clearly, but he could clearly hear the sound of his heart beating more and more violently. He opened his eyes to look at Lin Qinhe, and finally saw this man clearly, but he seemed to have fallen into a rosy twilight dream. He was worried about waking up from his dream, but he heard Lin Qinhe continue to say in a serious and determined tone: Tao Xi, I dont know what youve experienced before, what was missing, but from now on,I will be the most partial to you in the world. I will give you whatever you want, and you dont have to pretend to be good. You can be willful in front of me, and I will like all your willfulness. Tao Xis vision suddenly became blurred again, his eyes were sour and almost crying. His heart seemed to be tightly held in the palm by a pair of warm hands. He grew up to be sixteen and never knew what it was like to be favored. But Lin Qinhe said in his sixteenth year that he would be the person who favored him the most in the world. Tao Xi tried to hold back the sourness in his nostrils, locking the tears in his eyes, and heard Lin Qinhe ask him in a soft voice: Then do you still hate Lin Qinhe? Tao Xi abruptly blinked away the tears in his eyes, but his heart had long been roaring like a mountain and sea pouring down, and could no longer be filled. He looked at Lin Qinhe with eyes that had regained clarity, took a deep breath, biting the words and said seriously and sincerely: I like Lin Qinhe, I only like Lin Qinhe, I like Lin Qinhe the most, I like Lin Qinhe more than I like myself. I am a Lin Qinhe supremacist! Those sentences written in love letters that made you blush when you looked at them, he said without hesitation, saying the words to Lin Qinhe over and over again, as if to carve these three words in the most conspicuous position in the world. Tao Xis chest was still heaving violently, looking at Lin Qinhes eyes as hot as the setting sun hanging down outside the window, suddenly breaking away from the tangled purple mist and gray haze, like a burning fire wheel rolling violently on the horizon, as if the last red light would be burned to the end. All the gray mist in the sky was burned into red gold and red clouds, burned into the empty concert hall through the long windowsl, and also into Lin Qinhes never indifferent eyes. He silently looked at the young man with wet eyes in front of him, as if suppressing what is about to press the emotions, and suddenly reached out and clasped the back of his neck, lowered his head and kissed him again. But this time the kiss was more urgent, violent, and desperate, as if to burn out all the passions and love. ___________________ T/N: two more chapters because therell be no update tomorrow and on thursday CH 39 Open your mouth. Tao Xi closed his eyes and heard Lin Qinhe whisper to him. He obediently opened his lips, obediently being led to entwine with Lin Qinhe mouth and tongue. In the empty concert hall, they could only hear the sound of their panting and lips and tongues meet. Lin Qinhe pressed his waist and held him tightly in his arms. The kiss became more and more intense. Tao Xi gradually couldnt catch his breath, and his whole body was soft, relying only on Lin Qinhes hand around the waist to maintain standing. His face was as red as if he was dripping blood. He didnt know how long he kissed, but Lin Qinhe finally let go of him, panting, as if he was aware of his impatience. Tao Xi suddenly felt his body lighter; he was picked up by Lin Qinhes hands around his waist and gently placed on the piano. Lin Qinhe put one hand on his waist and the other hand on the piano beside him, trapping him in a small corner. He looked up slightly at him, looking at his slightly open red lips, and looking into his moist eyes and a faint smile appeared at the corners of his mouth. Tao Xi rarely saw Lin Qinhe smiling at him. He panted and stared at Lin Qinhe in a daze. At that moment he felt that he could give everything for this person. Tao Xi did not wait for his panting to calm down, he fiercely reached out and wrapped his arms around Lin Qinhes neck, lowered his head and took the initiative to kiss him violently, and clumsily and eagerly nibbled on Lin Qinhes lip. Lin Qinhe paused for a second and quickly responded enthusiastically to him, holding the waist hand and squeezing his waist hard, as if to pinch off. Tao Xi felt his initiative turned into passive, his whole body was soft in Lin Qinhes arms again, dizzily being kissed deeply. The tip of his tongue was chased and sucked and he couldnt find time to breathe in. His fingers convulsed unconsciously. He hummed impatiently, his entire scalp was tingling, and his heart was almost unable to beat due to lack of oxygen. When he felt that he was about to faint, Lin Qinhe finally let go of him again, hugged him tightly, and panted slightly in his ear. Tao Xis entire face was hot and swelling, and his eyes were in a daze. He didnt know why, but just listening to Lin Qinhes panting was making his whole body hot. He felt that he was too useless, and he came out with shame after realizing it. With his arms still around Lin Qinhes neck, he buried his head on the side of his neck, rubbed it lightly like a kitten, and whispered: You didnt lie to me? The voice was acting like a baby without even realizing it. Lin Qinhe held his waist, his voice was even more muffled: I said, I wont lie to you. Tao Xi couldnt help laughing in a muffled voice, but he suddenly remembered something. Even forgetting to be shy, he hurriedly jumped off the piano and asked, If you dont lie to me, then why did your mother say you are going to the States for college? Even with Yang Duole. Lin Qinhe looked at him, there was still a dark color in his eyes: I am to blame for not talking to you clearly about this matter. During this period of time I have looked for several universities in the States. There are comprehensive universities as well as art colleges suitable for you. When the choice is made, I will apply with you. In these two weeks of training outside, he asked Su Yun to help him with this and only yesterday did he get the detailed school information. Tao Xi was stunned. He didnt turn his head a bit. Looking at Lin Qinhe, he said blankly: But, but I dont have the money to study in the United States. The money he spent on college at home was funded by the kind-hearted sponsors grandfather, so he didnt even have to think about studying abroad, knowing that it would cost a lot of money. Lin Qinhe was silent for two seconds before holding Tao Xis hand and said: Its okay, these schools have scholarships, enough for you to study there. Tao Xis eyes brightened and then darkened, he hesitated: But what if I cant apply? He had never thought that he would have a chance to go to a better school abroad, but he also knew that if he wanted to continue studying oil painting, going abroad was a better choice. Lin Qinhe firmly said: Will definitely be able to apply. He didnt say that even if he couldnt apply, he could still let Tao Xi follow him to study. Although Tao Xi didnt know anything about studying abroad, he knew it wasnt that simple, and Lin Qinhe was probably just encouraging him. But he thought, as long as there was a chance, he was willing to try to seize it again. Tao Xi made up his mind, and after thinking about it, he stared at Lin Qinhe again and asked, Is it just the two of us? Dont add Yang Duole, he couldnt help thinking. Lin Qinhe seemed to see through his thoughts and a smile appeared in his eyes. He asked him, Who else do you want? Tao Xi blushed and shook his head quickly as he said repeatedly: Dont dont, just the two of us! All the uneasiness disappeared. It was like soaking in warm spring water, and the whole body was warm and pressed. The setting sun outside the window had completely plunged into the horizon, leaving only the dark purple ashes piled on the horizon. The light in the concert hall was completely dimmed, but Tao Xi did not feel dim at all. He looked at his moon and felt that the whole world was shining. Those deep grooves left by the wheel of fortune seemed to have been filled up in a flash, full of luxuriant grass after a night of spring rain. The concert hall was silent again, but if the heartbeat had a sound, it would have been more than noisy. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe in the dark purple light, and the person was looking back at him, his gaze rising in silence. His heart was soft and calm as he broke the silence and whispered to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe, I really like you so much. Lin Qinhe lowered his head and gently dropped a kiss on his lips, light and gentle, and said to him: Me too. Tao Xi raised the corners of his mouth and stood on tiptoe to drop another soft kiss on Lin Qinhes lips. Perhaps, to like someone was to want to be skin to skin with them every moment. The two people dawdled in the concert hall for a while. In the end, it was Tao Xi who urged them to go to night study before walking out the door together. Before closing the door, Tao Xi glanced at the black piano hidden in the dim light and suddenly said to Lin Qinhe: Can you teach me to play piano in the future? Only the one you played for me. Lin Qinhe nodded and said, Okay. Tao Xi then closed the door, and just as he put his hand down from the doorknob, he was held into a warm hand. Lin Qinhe led him out, but not in the direction of the stairs. Tao Xi found himself being taken to the trash can in the corner. He stared at Lin Qinhe in a daze, who had already let go of his hand and squatted down to start picking up the pieces of paper he had torn from the trash can. His chest was sore. Lin Qinhe was such a clean person. Tao Xi bent down to pull Lin Qinhes arm and persuaded, Dont pick it up, its too dirty, Ill write another one for you. Lin Qinhe was still picking up those pieces, carefully putting them into the same discarded envelop, and whispered: This is the first love letter you gave me, and like all the letters you gave me before, I will treasure them all. Tao Xis head was blank for a moment, looking at Lin Qinhe silently picking up the pieces in disbelief. His face suddenly rose up with warmth, and after a few beats, he hesitated: Wh, what letter? Lin Qinhe turned to look at him with his eyes that were somewhat unclear. He said: A total of 68 letters, signed by Xiao Tao1, and each letter has a peach blossom at the end. He paused for two seconds. Looking at Tao Xi who was already flushed, he laughed in a low voice and continued to say slowly: Dear Lin Qinhe, hello, I am very sorry to disturb you. I am from Qingshui County No. 1 High School. I saw you in the live English class and heard you say Tao Xi was so embarrassed that he covered his face and interrupted loudly, You hurry up and pick up your love letter! In the end, Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe put all the love letter pieces into the envelope. The two of them went to wash their hands and walked to the brightly lit teaching building together. You, how did you recognize that it was written by me? On their way, Tao Xi endured it for a long time but still couldnt help but ask. A persons handwriting can be recognized no matter how you cover it up. Some words cant be changed after a lifetime of habitual writing. Dont forget, you have a perfect score essay that was copied and distributed throughout the year. Lin Qinhe calmly said. In fact, it was more than that. He had always been a person who was interested in things and needed to find out. After realizing that the full score composition and letter might be from the same person, he directly checked Tao Xis student status file, and naturally also knew his good grades. Tao Xi somehow felt that the previous sentence was familiar2, and he never thought it was the perfect score essay that revealed himself. But Lin Qinhe was also too terrible, he could recognize this. Did you read too many detective novels? Why dont you become a detective in the future. Tao Xi was still a little embarrassed and decided to ease his embarrassment by teasing Lin Qinhe. I dont read much, its just that youre too stupid. Lin Qinhe said casually. Tao Xi froze. Sensing that Lin Qinhe was laughing at him, he glared at him and clenched his fist: Im very smart. If Im stupid, I wont be able to come here! Lin Qinhe suddenly became serious when he heard the words. He stopped and looked down at Tao Xi with a blank face. He just dropped a tiny rope into the well at that time, and if Tao Xi couldnt get the first place in the exam, he couldnt come here. Now he felt scared. What if Tao Xi didnt perform well at the time and failed to get the first place in the exam? He shouldnt make the conditions so harsh. Lin Qinhe lifted his hand and pinched the back of Tao Xis neck. Seeing this person shuddering, he curled up his mouth and smiled, and said in a low voice: Yes, fortunately you are very smart, thank you. Tao Xi raised his hand and touched his neck. He didnt expect Lin Qinhe would say thank you. He raised his chin slightly and said: Youre welcome, I was born so smart, you know my goal is Huang Qing. But Lin Qinhes face changed abruptly, staring at Tao Xi with an unkind gaze. Tao Xi shuddered again and realizing that Lin Qinhe really changed color at the mention of Huang Qing, he casted aside his mouth and said: I want to be second place in the grade ah. Youre first place, Im second. Isnt this very beautiful? Is it possible for me to get first place? Thats too difficult for me. Lin Qinhes frowning eyebrows stretched out. They continued to walk to the teaching building, and he said flatly: Then you have to keep working hard. Tao Xi followed along, tugging at Lin Qinhes sleeve and shaking it, he spoke softly: Then you as a boyfriend must continue to help me. After saying that, he himself was embarrassed by the word boyfriend. He quickly put down your hands and coughed slightly, eyes on the nose and nose on the heart.3 Lin Qinhe also coughed slightly, and said, Of course. The two walked very slowly. Fortunately, there was no teacher on the way. The sound of English listening occasionally came from the teaching building, the familiar nine pounds and fifteen pence. Tao Xi hated the school for being so small. He remembered one more thing and asked Lin Qinhe: Why did you come back early? Isnt it tomorrow? Lin Qinhe thought about it and said, The training camp ended early. Tao Xi suddenly understood, and after a few seconds of silence, he said without words, You opened the comics I gave you on time and read them, right? Lin Qinhe let out an um. Then you can read tomorrows comics when you go back today. Tao Xi said, applauding his plan secretly. Okay. Lin Qinhe agreed. But in fact, he didnt hold back to open it today. In tomorrows comic, the protagonists returned to the moon and the small meteorite. Moon: Why have you been wandering in the universe? Little meteorite: Because I lost my flight path. Moon: With so many stars in the universe, why have you been here all the time? Little meteorite: Because even if there are thousands of night stars, I only like this moon, ah. ___________________ The author has something to say: BGM: Thousands of Songs T/N: the bgm song is Thousands of Songs (ǧǧڸ ) from Priscilla Chan its the peach Tao (), Tao Xis Tao is (pottery) its from the art teacher who scolded Tao Xi for painting for those art students The appearance of bowing his head because of being shy, ashamed, etc. Like this: CH 40 Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe dawdled all the way to the first classroom and it just happened that the first bell of night study just rang. The two returned to their seats with the same expression as usual, but unexpectedly they were closely observed and questioned by Bi Chengfei. Bi Chengfei first took a close look at Tao Xis face and found that not only he was not as angry and sad as when the parent meeting was over before, but he was a little bit happy? He glanced at Lin Qinhe quietly again, xueshen still looked cold, but there seemed to be something different that he couldnt tell. When he saw Tao Xi turn around and leave after asking Luo Zhengyin two questions before, he hurriedly sent a Wechat messages to Lin Qinhe, thinking that the two had some kind of conflict. You quarreled and made up? Bi Chengfei asked Tao Xi in a whisper, covering his mouth with his hand. Tao Xi thought that Bi Chengfeis brain was very unique. He laughed and joked: Yeah, just went out to finish a fight, no win or loss, so we made up. Lin Qinhe turned his head and glanced at Tao Xi, his gaze unclear. Tao Xi inexplicably felt that Lin Qinhe was looking at his lips, he subconsciously pursed his lips. Recalling the kiss in the concert hall just now, his cheeks and lips immediately began to burn. He realized afterwards, why did you kiss so many times while in a daze? It must be Lin Qinhes fault. Of course Bi Chengfei did not believe Tao Xis words, after all, there was no trace of a fight between the two, but he accidentally discovered that Tao Xis lips were a little swollen and joked with a cheap mouth: Could it be that you fight with your mouth. Scram! Tao Xi slapped Bi Chengfei back. Then he heard a very light laughter from Lin Qinhe on the side, and immediately turned his head and glared at the culprit. Bi Chengfei didnt come to talk again, bowed his head and said to Taoxi on WeChat: Its fine if youre alright. I sent a WeChat message to xueshen before. He went to see you as soon as he came back. It seems that xueshen still cares about you very much. Tao Xi looked at the message sent by Bi Chengfei on his phone, and a faint light appeared in his brain, as if he remembered something that he had overlooked. He typed quickly on the screen: You have Lin Qinhes WeChat? Bi Chengfei: Of course. I have been xueshens classmate from junior high school to now, and our parents know each other too. Its not difficult to have a WeChat. Tao Xi typed again: Does he usually post to Moments? Bi Chengfei: Dont you also have him on WeChat? I never saw him post to Moments anyway. He also screenshotted Lin Qinhes moment. Tao Xi clicked to open the picture, and it was indeed blank. He turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, this person was looking down at the book calmly. Noticing his gaze, he looked at him sideways, the eyes meant ?. Tao Xi ignored him. He lowered his head and clicked on Lin Qinhes Moments on his mobile phone. Counting one by one, he found that starting from the photos of Japanese vacation scenery a long time ago, and including the koi pictures before the midterm exam, there were a total of 28 posts. Each one was a photo, no text. During Lin Qinhes training camp two weeks ago, Tao Xi saw that Lin Qinhe posted one or two Moments every day, and those Lin Qinhe shots of life had soothed his restless heart. Tao Xi took a deep breath and couldnt say what he felt in his heart. He took out the book of paintings that he had spent nearly a month from his school bag. The original plan was to give it to him after confessing to Lin Qinhe tomorrow, but everything was just right now. This is the painting I promised to give you. Tao Xi put the painting collection on Lin Qinhes desk as he said to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe looked at the collection of paintings in front of him, his eyes could not hide his surprise. He thought Tao Xi painted a painting for him, but he didnt expect it to be a collection of paintings. The cover of the collection was very simple. On the embossed paper was the entire blue night sky, only a small golden moon in the upper right corner, like a golden copper coin sinking at the bottom of a blue lake. He opened the album and looked at it carefully one by one. Each painting showed the moon, from the beginning of the new moon to the end of the new moon, a full thirty-days cycle. Each painting had a different landscape, mountains and valleys, vast rivers, neon cities It was the scenery and the moon all over the world. Lin Qinhes finger flipping through one of the paintings paused. In the painting was the last quarter moon on the 23rd, and the scenery was the streets of Tokyo under the moonlight. It was the same as the photos he posted in his Moments after vacationing in Japan with Luo Zhengyin and Yang Duole, except that the sky turned from dusk to night, and the streets were full of neon lights and there was a moon. At that time, many people in the class were on vacation, and only one person stayed in the school dormitory. Tao Xi explained on the sidelines, Many of the landscapes inside are found on the Internet. I havent been there, so the paintings may not be the same as the actual scenes. For more than ten years, he had been isolated in that seemingly paradise place. If he hadnt seen Lin Qinhe, he might have wasted his life in the mountain village or a corner of nowhere. Tao Xi looked at the side of Lin Qinhes face with a calm smile. At this time, the class bell rang, and as Bi Aoxue walked into the classroom with her laptop, the class erupted in enthusiastic cheers. Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe say something, but the sudden noise couldnt make him hear clearly. What did you say? Tao Xi asked, raising his voice. The lights in the classroom were suddenly extinguished, and suddenly it fell into dim darkness. Some people were cheering because of watching a movie during the night study and some were urging loudly, How come the movie hasnt been tuned out yet! Can you do it, Bi Chengfei? Tao Xis eyes turned dark. his hand was held by one hand, and then was pulled to his side, and crashed into Lin Qinhes arms. Amidst the bustling noise, he heard Lin Qinhe whisper in his ear: I will take you to many places in the future. To see the moon all over the world. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe in the dim, and a smile spread at the corners of his mouth. He looked around and suddenly flew closer to Lin Qinhe, intending to sneak a kiss on Lin Qinhes face. However, because he couldnt see and didnt control the force well, he hit his forehead first, as if hitting Lin Qinhes forehead. Tao Xi covered his forehead and withdrew quickly, turning his face away in embarrassment. But Lin Qinhe held his hand and suddenly increased his strength. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe with a guilty conscience. He couldnt see clearly, but he seemed to have noticed this persons deep dissatisfaction. He gently scratched Lin Qinhes palm with his finger to express his apologies, and Lin Qinhe instantly let go of his hand. Bi Aoxue played an action film with foreign language original sound and no subtitles. The special effects were flying around and the sound was loud. Both boys and girls watched attentively. Tao Xi didnt care about it, he was still a little embarrassed that he failed his sneak attack. He quietly glanced at Lin Qinhe on the side, Lin Qinhe leaned back in his chair to watch the movie in a leisurely manner, only the light leaping on the screen narrowed into his pupils, and he seemed to be watching it very seriously. Tao Xi then forced himself to watch the movie seriously, listening to the original lines while watching it to exercise his English listening skills. The plot developed to its climax. The decent villain fought fiercely in a dark tunnel, and the entire classroom was filled with darkness and noisy sound effects. Tao Xi had already immersed in it and was watching with gusto. Suddenly the back of his neck was clasped by a hand to embrace him, and then a kiss was gently dropped on his forehead where he had just hit Lin Qinhe. Learned it? He heard Lin Qinhe whisper. Tao Xi heard his heartbeat in the dark more intense than the gunshots in the movie. He wanted to sneak back, but the movie screen suddenly lit up, so he had to give up. When the movie was over and the class was over, Tao Xi found that he hadnt watched the second half of the movie at all, and his head was filled with only the sound of gunfire and the heart was very excited. The classroom lights were turned on again, and the people in the class quickly rushed out of the classroom carrying their school bags. Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe take out a large handful of materials from a drawer and put them on his desk, saying to him. This is some information for you about universities in the States, and TOEFL textbooks. Lin Qinhe paused and looked at Tao Xi before continuing, Its the perfect time to start preparing now. Tao Xi looked at the detailed information in front of him in a daze, and he realized that Lin Qinhe had long been seriously fulfilling his promise to go to university with him, and had long been planning for their future. And he was so angry because he scolded Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi eagerly looked at Lin Qinhe, stretched out his hand and pinched Lin Qinhes sleeve. He silently expressed I was wrong. Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xis hand holding his sleeve. He held that hand and put it in his jacket pocket and said, Send me to the school gate. Tao Xi nodded heavily. The two of them walked towards the gate along Xiangzhang Road in the dark. It was the same as the night before the training camp, but the atmosphere seemed to be different. When they looked at each other, they no longer collided and then carefully staggered. Tao Xi walked closely next to Lin Qinhe and listened carefully to Lin Qinhes introduction of the TOEFL test. My spoken English is too bad, is it hard to improve my speaking? The spoken English of Qingshui County English teachers was very plastic. Reading, listening and writing could be improved through a lot of training, but speaking was different. Its not difficult, Im here, Lin Qinhe said. Tao Xi smiled. He remembered the first time he saw Lin Qinhe on the live screen, it was when Bi Aoxue asked Lin Qinhe to give an English speech. At that time he did not understand much, but he also knew how natural and standard Lin Qinhes spoken language was. At that time, he would never have thought that later Lin Qinhe would teach him speaking language. Then I will communicate with you in English! Tao Xi clenched his fist at Lin Qinhe, his eyes sparkling and he was full of confidence in his speaking training. Okay. Then there was silence as a result. Tao Xi thought in his mind for a long time, translating while trying to say something, but after thinking for a long time, he didnt have any suitable sentence. He always found it strange to say it. Finally, when the two of them walked to the school gate, Tao Xi was relieved. He waved to Lin Qinhe, and said with a smile: Goodbye. See you tomorrow! 1 After returning to his dorm room, Tao Xi first took a shower, then put the school information and TOEFL textbook that Lin Qinhe gave him on his desk, sat down and began to look up the school materials on the table. He used his cell phone to find out that these schools were ranked very high, and most of them were world-renowned art colleges, but the specific application matters and scholarship rules were not available on the domestic internet, and he couldnt find the official website of the school. Tao Xi thought for a while, and asked Pan Yan who majored in art. I dont know this very well. After all, my grandfather asked me to study at the Tsinghua Academy of Fine Arts or the Central Academy of Fine Arts, so I was not allowed to study abroad. Pan Yan said, and asked Tao Xi why he suddenly wanted to study art abroad. I plan to continue to learn painting in the future, mainly oil painting, foreign schools should be better. Tao Xi said. When he saw Fang Suis painting in the exhibition, when Lin Qinhe said he wanted to see his exhibition, he decided to do it. This was also a gift that his mother left to him that would not be taken away; the gift of painting. Pan Yan nodded and said, Thats true. Its better to study oil painting or go abroad. For example, if my grandfather only wants me to study Chinese painting, there is no need to go abroad. Xu Ziqi, who was writing the paper opposite, said coldly and gloomily, Foreign art colleges are not affordable for ordinary families, and art is a useless major that burns money. Pan Yan exploded in an instant, and began a fierce word battle with Xu Ziqi. Tao Xi ignored it. He stared at the information in front of him for a while, and suddenly thought of someone. Previously, he met a member of the Qinghua Association at the charity exhibition, a girl named Ding Yanan from the Academy of Fine Arts. At that time, he was forced to add her WeChat because of the enthusiasm of the other party, and he also learned during the conversation that she planned to study in the United States. Tao Xi opened his WeChat address book, found the person he had never chatted with since he added her, and sent her a message after he had worded it for half a day to make sure he was polite enough not to be abrupt. Unexpectedly, Ding Yanan responded quickly and answered his questions very enthusiastically. Ding Yanan: These prestigious schools you mentioned can indeed apply for scholarships, and there are also very high full scholarships, but the application is quite difficult. There are not many people in China who can apply for the full scholarship. Tao Xi was not surprised to see this message, he knew that Lin Qinhe said can definitely apply may be to encourage him. But he was willing to try his best for this not-so-easy opportunity. He suddenly realized that his life trajectory had already changed. He had never thought that he could study in Wenhua No. 1 High School. He never thought that his goal would be Tsinghua University and Peking University, and he never thought that he would eventually want to apply to a prestigious foreign school. Those worlds that were dreamlike to his past self, he seemed to be approaching step by step. Tao Xi received another pile of information and links from Ding Yannan. Ding Yannan: If you want to apply, an excellent portfolio is essential. From now on, you must accumulate works, participate in some well-known competitions and art exhibitions, get to know some seniors in the art world, and strive to get their letters of recommendation. I still suggest you join our association. There are many young painters who have studied in famous foreign schools. They must know more than me. Tao Xi solemnly thanked her, saved all the information and links, then asked Ding Yanan for a copy of the application form for the Qinghua Painting Association. He filled it out carefully and sent it to the associations email address. He wrote down the matters and main points Ding Yanan said one by one in his notebook. He planned to ask the elder for advice when he went to Qiao Henians place to learn painting at the weekend. The lights were turned off soon after all this was done. Tao Xi climbed into bed and buried himself in the soft quilt. He opened his WeChat on his phone to send Lin Qinhe a good night message, but found that Lin Qinhes avatar had changed. From a blank picture to the cover of the album he gave to Lin Qinhe. The golden moon in the dark blue night sky. The corner of Tao Xis mouth turned up and he looked at his own avatar again, the deep blue planet that he had painted with gouache. He typed in the dialog: Good night, Mr. Moon. Moon: Good night.2 __________________ T/N: I love them so much In English Both good night are in English CH 41 Tao Xi started his daily speaking training. Lin Qinhe would read through and record the English materials and send them to him, and he would listen to it on his cell phone while imitating Lin Qinhes pronunciation and accent. He got up earlier in the morning and after a quick breakfast in the cafeteria, he ran to the basketball court near the school gate to practice speaking for half an hour in the crisp December morning breeze. Tao Xi glanced at the time and walked from the basketball court to the school gate with his English vocabulary book. Lin Qinhe should be there in a few minutes. He stood in the corner next to the guards post with his head down, memorizing the words in the booklet. When he was reciting a very complicated word, Tao Xi suddenly felt a blackness in front of his eyes, and was covered by a soft thing. He pulled it down below his eyes to see that Lin Qinhe was looking down at him with a smile at the corner of his mouth. Looking down again, there was a black cashmere scarf around his neck, which still had the temperature that belonged to Lin Qinhe Lin Qinhe stretched out his hand to sort out the scarf and wrapped Tao Xis neck tightly. Looking at his bright eyes, he said: Dont wait for me in the morning, its very cold. Tao Xi shook his head in the soft and warm scarf: Im going out to practice speaking anyway. My head will be clearer if I feel colder. Lin Qinhe took a look at Tao Xis frozen fingers and frowned disapprovingly, but didnt say anything. The two of them walked together down the Xiangzhan Road towards the teaching building. These days Tao Xi would prepare speaking materials every night and speak English with Lin Qinhe on the way to the class in the morning. Lin Qinhe would correct his incorrect pronunciation and then randomly ask questions for him to answer on the spot. Tao Xi racked his brain to answer Lin Qinhes questions, and after answering, he found that Lin Qinhe had already led him off the path to the school building and came to the door of the convenience store instead. Do you want to buy breakfast? Tao Xi asked. Lin Qinhe didnt say anything and went straight inside the convenience store. Tao Xi followed him in and saw Lin Qinhe take a pair of gray plush gloves and then went straight to the cashier to check out. Lin Qinhe walked outside the convenience store, unwrapped the package and handed the gloves to Tao Xi. Tao Xi took the gloves in a daze. These gloves were furry, and there were bears on the back of the hand, they were quite similar to the bears they caught before. Seeing Tao Xi staring at the gloves, Lin Qinhe thought he didnt like them, so he said, Just take it for now. Tao Xi raised his eyes to look at Lin Qinhe, and handed him a glove. He bent his eyes and said Lets have one for each of us. Lin Qinhe refused: I dont use it. Tao Xi put on both gloves, bowed his head and looked back and forth with his fingers open. After class at noon, Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe went to the cafeteria to eat together. This was one of the things he used to yearn for, now he followed Lin Qinhe to the cafeteria to eat. He felt that the aunts in the cafeteria had become as beautiful as flowers and the hand serving food was also steady. Today, a group of junior students came to the school to visit so the cafeteria was full. Tao Xi carried the meal tray and went to find a seat together with Lin Qinhe. Along the way, there were a lot of people looking at two people quietly, mainly girls. TaoXi didnt know what they were whispering, and also didnt care. Qinhe ge! Tao Xis heart sank when he heard these three words. He turned to look around and saw that Yang Duole seemed to be looking for a seat with his meal tray. On the side was his roommate Xu Ziqi, looking back and forth between him and Lin Qinhe. After a few glances, his face was ugly for a moment. Yang Duoles eyes fell on the black cashmere scarf that Tao Xi was wearing for two seconds. He pursed his lips, walked up to Lin Qinhe and asked with a smile, Are you guys looking for seats too? Lin Qinhe nodded and glanced at Tao Xi on the side. Tao Xis expression did not change much, he even greeted Yang Duole and Xu Ziqi. Xu Ziqi looked at Lin Qinhe. After hesitating for a while, he pointed to a table not far away and suggested to Lin Qinhe: I think those people are almost finished eating, we can sit there together. Tao Xi frowned imperceptibly, a wave of irritation surged in his heart. Yang Duole also glanced at the table over there and said to Lin Qinhe: Why not just sit there, its a seat for four people. Lin Qinhes tone was indifferent: No need, well find another seat. He paused, looked at Tao Xi and said, Lets go. Tao Xi secretly breathed a sigh of relief and followed Lin Qinhe to leave. Before turning around, he saw Yang Duole staring at him. After Xu Ziqi sat down with Yang Duole, he looked at Yang Duoles face and said, That person can only stay here for a year, he will go back to the ravine in his third year of high school. He will have nothing to do with you in the future. He knew that Yang Duole, like himself, did not like Tao Xi and was not used to seeing Lin Qinhe and Tao Xi on good terms. Yang Duole hung his eyes so that he couldnt see his expression clearly. He only said, He has nothing to do with us now, ah. Seeing the opportunity, Xu Ziqi agreed: Yes, were not in the same world as him. With the coming of several cold waves in December, the temperature in Wenhua City dropped again and again. Tao Xi changed into his winter school uniform early, and got up early every day to study. He thought it was a fallacy that puppy love would affect his study. At least he thought he didnt, and even learned better. During this period, he successfully joined the Qinghua Painting Association and was added into a WeChat group of hundreds of people. The vice president Guan Fanyun took the initiative to add him to WeChat. Only then did he remember that this woman was the lover of Yang Zhengming whom he met at the exhibition. During the lunch break, Lin Qinhe went to the temporary competition training class set up by the school and Tao Xi couldnt resist clicking on Guan Fanyuns Moments. Guan Fanyuns moments were mostly selfies, or showing off gifts, but no photos of Yang Zhengming appeared. There were also a few paintings that she drew. Tao Xi took a closer look and found it to be very ordinary. Compared to Fang Sui, it wasnt even at the same level. He didnt know how she became the vice chairman, or why Yang Zhengming used her as Fang Suis stand-in. Tao Xi felt bored. He quit WeChat and turned off his phone. He took out his pen to do TOEFL reading questions, and not long after that, a boy came over and said to him: Tao Xi, when I went to the security post to pick up the courier, I ran into your dad and he asked you to go. Tao Xi squeezed the pen in his hand: Got it, thank you. Its just that I was delayed on the way back, so maybe your dad waited a little longer. Sorry. The boy apologized. Its okay. Tao Xi thanked the boy again and pulled out a money roll tied with a rubber band from the middle of the school bag. This was the money he prepared a long time ago, just waiting for Tao Jian to come back to him one day. Maybe Tao Jian did find a job before, but he must have lost everything in gambling so he came to him to get the money. He knew this father too well. Although he knew it could be a bottomless pit, he had to fill it, even if it was temporary. He would not allow anyone to ruin his life here with Lin Qinhe, never. Tao Xi quickly walked to the guard room with the money, but did not see Tao Jians shadow. The security guard who was familiar with him because he was reading English at the school gate every day, waved to him: Your dad did come half an hour ago, but he left again. Tao Xi frowned, feeling a bad premonition in his heart for some reason. He was silent for a while and asked the security guard: Did he say anything? The security guard sighed and looked at Tao Xi with a serious expression. He wanted to say something for a few seconds but finally said, Nothing. You go back and get ready for class. Tao Xis heart was full of suspicions but he still nodded his head. Before leaving, the security guard whispered to him: In the future, try to ask your father to come to school less. Tao Xi pursed his lips, lowered his eyes and said, Im sorry, Ive caused you trouble. He thought that Tao Jian might have made a fuss in the guard room like last time, so the security guard was justifiably fed up. The security guard waved his hand and said tactfully: Its okay, I dont mean anything else, its just that your father seems to get emotional easily. Im worried that your study will be affected. Tao Xi thanked the security guard and turned around to leave. Seeing Tao Xi walking far, the security guard sighed at the colleague who came in to change shifts: This kid looks like a good boy, but his father is weird. The colleague asked curiously: Another fight with you? The security guard shook his head and said, Its not with me, its with He paused and sighed, Oh, forget it, just a rural person with no culture, dont talk about it. In the morning, he was on duty in the guard room and saw Tao Jian come in wearing a pair of leather shoes that had fallen off. Because of the last incident, he didnt have a good impression of this father. Just as he was about to tell him that he could not enter the school without the permission of the head teacher, he saw Yang Duole come in. He immediately smiled and asked, Yang Duole, take leave and go home again? Before Yang Duole could answer, Tao Jian walked up to him with a few big steps and asked loudly with an odd expression, Whats your name? Yang Duole? At that time, Yang Duole seemed to be a little frightened. He glared at Tao Jian and said, Who are you? The security guard felt something was wrong, but before he could shield Yang Dole behind him, Tao Jian violently grabbed Yang Duoles right hand and rolled up his sleeve, revealing the red birthmark on his right wrist. He could hardly describe Tao Jians look at the time. He only clearly remembered that Tao Jians face was flushed, as if drinking wine on his face, staring at the birthmark and staring at Yang Duoles face, his eyes glistened and he vaguely said my son in his mouth. Yang Duole was still struggling. He seemed to have heard what Tao Jian said. His face was pale in fright, his lips were trembling, and he even forgot about the struggle. The security guard thought this man was crazy and hurriedly stepped forward to separate the two, but Tao Jian quickly let go of his hand. He looked up and down Yang Duole and suddenly pointed his finger at him: You come out with me. I have something to tell you. The security guard protected Yang Duole behind him and said angrily at Tao Jian: Didnt you come to see your son Tao Xi? He may be on his way here. This student has nothing to do with you! Tao Jian impatiently took out a cigarette and choked, How do you know Laozi has nothing to do with him? He lit the cigarette and pointed at Yang Duole with his cigarette between his fingers and said threateningly, If you dont come out, Ill talk to you here. After speaking, he walked out of the guard room, smoking a cigarette outside the door, waiting for Yang Duole to come out. The security guard turned and looked at Yang Duole, ready to ask him whether he knew this man or not, but found that Yang Duoles face was ashen, his forehead was full of cold sweat and his eyes were hollow and listless, as if he had just woken up from a nightmare. He murmured: He came to find Tao Xi? The guard said with a worried gaze, Yes, he is Tao Xis father, if you dont know him, dont go out, go back to school first and wait for your family to pick you up. Yang Duoles face became even paler and he shook his head sluggishly. He was about to walk out, but before walking out the door, he suddenly turned to him and said, Uncle, can this matter not be told to others? His eyes were black and sunken without light. The security guard was stunned, he subconsciously nodded and said OK, but out of concern he still asked: Is it really okay? Yang Duole opened his bloodless lips but then he turned around and walked out without saying anything. The security guard watched Yang Duole and Tao Jian walking away uncomfortably. Yang Duole seemed to have been avoiding Tao Jian like a snake and scorpion, but did not completely shake him off. The two began to argue fiercely halfway through the walk. He guessed for a long time and still didnt get the answer. He wanted to call Mr. Yang, but remembered that he had agreed to Yang Duole, so he had to give up. When Tao Xi returned to the classroom with the money he had not given, Lin Qinhe had already returned and sat in his seat. He sorted his facial expressions, returned to his seat and asked Lin Qinhe briskly: Is the training finished so soon? Lin Qinhe didnt answer. Instead, he lowered his eyes to look at Tao Xis eyes, reaching out his hand to pinch his chin. His thumb pressed at the corner of his mouth and lifted it upward, asking. Why are you unhappy? Tao Xi was stunned. He looked around first to make sure that no one was looking behind before he was relieved. He avoided Lin Qinhes hand and put the TOEFL training questions on Lin Qinhes desk and said. Got a lot of reading questions wrong. Lin Qinhe didnt ask any more questions and started to give Tao Xi reading questions. In addition to the lunch break, Tao Xi would also set aside a fixed amount of time to practice English during the break before night study, and Lin Qinhe would usually tutor him as long as he was free. You seem to have a call. In the evening, Tao Xi knocked on Lin Qinhes arm and he heard Lin Qinhes cell phone vibrating. Lin Qinhe put down the pen in his hand and took out his phone to see that it was Luo Zhengyins call. He frowned slightly and said Its my mother to Tao Xi before he picked up. Tao Xi was wondering if he should avoid it, but Lin Qinhe held his hand with the other hand and pinched his fingers back and forth under the table, making his fingertips itch. Okay, Ill be back soon. Lin Qinhe frowned deeply. He thought for a while and said to Tao Xi: There is something wrong at home. I have to ask for a leave tonight. Tao Xi felt pressure in his heart and asked, Is it serious? Lin Qinhe shook his head. He held Tao Xis hand tightly and said in a low voice, Dont worry about the TOEFL test. It doesnt matter if you cant pass it, you can take it many times. Tao Xi didnt expect that Lin Qinhe still remembered what he said at noon that he was unhappy because he didnt do well in the reading questions. He scratched Lin Qinhes palm and said with a smile: Im not nervous anymore. Lin Qinhe got up and packed his school bag, said See you tomorrow, then turned around and left the classroom. Tao Xi watched Lin Qinhes back disappear completely before putting the money roll in his pocket back into his school bag. Why on earth did Tao Jian come to school and then go back halfway? He did not believe that Tao Jian had suddenly found his conscience. Tao Xi thought for a while, but didnt think of a reason. The author has something to say: Yang Duole often has nightmares that he is not a child of his parents, as mentioned earlie CH 42 Lele, come out and have some dinner, okay? Luo Zhengyin knocked on the door of the audio-visual room again, but only a very light movie sound came from inside. Yang Duole remained silent, the door was locked by him. From the afternoon to the evening, he stayed inside for more than six hours without coming out. Luo Zhengyin sighed and stood quietly at the door for a while, then sent another WeChat to Lin Qinhe. A few days ago, Yang Duole had been staying at his grandparents house, but he suddenly came over at one oclock this afternoon. Luo Zhengyin saw that Yang Duoles face was white and his walking was wobbly, so she thought he was having health problems again and was so anxious that she almost called the emergency number, but was stopped by Yang Duole. Luo Zhengyin asked anxiously for a long time, but Yang Duole only kept silent, his face was bloodless, and after a while, he suddenly asked her. Mother Luo, at the time Iwhere exactly did my mother give birth to me? Luo Zhengyin didnt expect Yang Duole to ask this question. The birth of Yang Duole more than sixteen years ago was a memory that she and the two elders of the Fang family did not want to mention. At that time, she fell into postpartum depression as it hadnt been long since she gave birth and was unable to follow the two elders of Fang family and Yang Zhengming to go to the place where Fang Sui last lived. Luo Zhengyin thought Yang Duole was thinking about her mother, but she didnt want to think about it all these years. With red eyes, she said: At that time, it was your grandparents who received the call and went to Qingshui County to pick you up. Uncle Fang also told me later that ASui lived there all the time. Uncle Fang never told me specifically where it was. I only know that a kind-hearted farmer in Qingshui County took her in. Fang Zuqings character was old-fashioned and conservative. What happened to his daughter was not only a grief for him, but also a secret. For so many years, the family had not been revealed, and she did not dare to go to that sad place. Qingshui County Yang Duole muttered with hollow eyes. Lele, whats wrong with you? Luo Zhengyin looked at Yang Duole worriedly, she had never seen this child, whom she loved the most, looked so desperate. Yang Duole didnt answer her and locked himself into the room. She tried to persuade him several times outside the door but to no avail, so she had to call Lin Qinhe. In the past, when Yang Duole lost his temper, Lin Qinhe was the most useful to come forward. Luo Zhengyin came down the stairs and saw Lin Qinhe just coming in from the door, so she went over and said, Qinhe, go and see Lele. I dont know whats wrong with him today, he wont talk or eat. No amount of persuasion helped. Lin Qinhe frowned and walked upstairs in silence. He stood outside the door and raised his hand to knock directly, raising his voice and said, Lele. Lin Qinhe thought he would have to wait for a while, but Yang Duole quickly opened the door. The room didnt have the lights on, only the faint light from the movie. Yang Duole looked straight at him and did not say anything, his pupils did not have a bit of luster. Lin Qinhe walked straight in and glanced at the movie on the projection screen. It was a very depressing movie at a first glance. It was not the type Yang Duole liked to watch before. He watched Yang Duole return to the sofa and curl up to sit down. He asked directly: Whats going on? He was never as patient as Luo Zhengyin in coaxing people. Yang Duole hugged his legs and stared at the movie on the screen, still not saying anything. Lin Qinhe glanced at the movie again. The screen showed a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy sleeping on a dark green bed. He seemed to be having nightmares, frowning and clutching the quilt, whispering in his sleep, and the soundtrack made people feel a little uneasy. Lin Qinhe turned on the light and paused the movie with the remote control before he walked to the sofa and sat down. Tearing open a bag of Yang Duoles favorite potato chips and placing it in front of him, his tone softened: If you feel uncomfortable, you can tell me, didnt you always do that before? Yang Duole couldnt adapt to the bright light and raised his hand to cover his eyes. After a while, he asked dumbly: Qinhe ge, you being good to me has nothing to do with my mother, right? Not because I am my mothers son. Lin Qinhe wrinkled his brow at his words and said after a moment of silence, There is no relationship. After a pause, he asked again, Why do you ask this question? Yang Duole put down the hand that blocked his eyes and clicked on the movie again with the remote control. He did not answer Lin Qinhes question, and instead whispered as if talking to himself: If one day, there is a person who deliberately wants to take away your things, what will you do? The teenager in the movie suddenly woke up from his nightmare with a big gasp and opened his bloodshot eyes in the heavy sound effects. Lin Qinhe frowned and looked at Yang Duoles lackluster eyes. This question was somewhat absurd when asked by Yang Duole. He replied in an indifferent tone. If it should be yours, others cant take it away. what shouldnt be yours, sooner or later will be returned. Yang Duole looked at Lin Qinhe quickly, and a bit of anger and hatred appeared in his dark eyes. He opened his mouth to say something, and finally held back. He moved towards Lin Qinhe on the sofa. Tugging on his arm as if he was seeking something to rely on, he asked nonchalantly: Qinhe ge, will you always be on my side? No matter what I do, no matter who I am. Lin Qinhe threw the bag of potato chips back on the table. He suppressed the irritability in his heart. He only felt that the question was childish like this person who would always be willful, and said with little patience left: Lele, you are not a child anymore. There are many things in the world that are not just about right and wrong, it does not make sense to let other people stand in line. The phone in Lin Qinhes pocket vibrated as he finished speaking and he quickly took it out to see that it was Su Yuns WeChat message. Before he could click on the WeChat box, Yang Duole on the side suddenly stood up and said loudly: Did Tao Xi send this to you?! His tone was full of strong hostility. Yang Duoles eyes were red, he clenched his fists and arched his back slightly, like a frightened bird, defensive and scared Lin Qinhe pressed off the screen of the phone and stood up slowly. He wrinkled his brows deeply and his face sank. He stared at the person in front of him who was obviously not in a normal state of mind and said nothing. Yang Duole was subconsciously afraid of Lin Qinhe like this. He took a step back, raised his hand and wiped his tears. A muffled choking sound came out of his throat, trying to get Lin Qinhes retreat by crying like he did when he was a child: Qinhe ge, I told you clearly that I dont like him, why do you still want to get so close to him? We grew up together, could it be that our relationship of so many years is no match for the few months youve known him? He had long discovered that Lin Qinhe and Tao Xis relationship was getting closer and closer. The closeness was a little abnormal. Before he was just uncomfortable in his heart, and only today did he know. That person deliberately came to Wenhua No. 1 High School and approached him and Lin Qinhe, just to take everything from him step by step! He didnt want to believe that vulgar man who claimed to be his father, but the facts seemed too hard for him not to believe it. This nightmare that accompanied him since childhood was waking up. Came from Qingshui Town, looked very similar to Fang Sui, had the same talent for painting, and more importantly. When he saw him for the first time, he showed strong hostility toward him! He must be coming to get back at himself and steal everything from him, he must be. Luo Zhengyin, who had been outside the door, could not help but walk in when he heard Yang Duoles hysterical sound. Seeing Yang Duoles chest violently rising and falling with tears on his face, she hurriedly walked over and gently patted his back, gently soothed a few words, and winked at Lin Qinhe. But Lin Qinhe ignored it. He seemed to have been touched by some negative scales, frowning and his indifferent eyes suppressed his anger. After enduring it for a long time, he said solemnly to Yang Duole: Yang Duole, not everyone has to revolve around you. Who do you hate, what does it have to do with me? The tone of voice was almost cold. Qinhe! Luo Zhengyin looked at Lin Qinhe with dissatisfaction in her eyes, Dont talk to Lele like that, you know very well that he is in a bad mood. Yang Duole buried himself in Luo Zhengyins shoulder and cried bitterly. Luo Zhengyin hurriedly turned her head to comfort. Lin Qinhe looked at these two people in front of him, took a deep breath and directly turned around and walked towards the door, as if he was trying to escape from some confined space that was suffocating him. Luo Zhengyin smoothed Yang Duole while wiping the tears from his face and whispered softly: Okay, dont cry, stay here with Luos mom for the next few days, do you want to go out to play tomorrow? Yang Duole just cried without saying anything. Luo Zhengyin heard Yang Duoles cell phone ringing, so she coaxed, Look who is calling you? Is it your grandparents calling? They definitely dont want you to cry again, right? I dont want to pick it up. Yang Duole choked. Fine, fine, dont answer it, Ill hang up for you. Luo Zhengyin brought the phone over and saw that it wasnt the call from the two elders of the Fang family, but Guan Fanyun, the lover of Yang Zhengming. She frowned, hung up the phone and told Yang Duole: In the future, if that woman surnamed Guan looks for you again, just ignore her. Yang Zhengming had countless lovers over the years. Guan Fanyun had been relatively stable in the past two years. The last time she came to the school to give Yang Duole a gift, Yang Duole was so angry that he took time off work and went home and did not eat. Luo Zhengyin thought it was this woman again that made Yang Duole emotional today. She wanted to find a chance to talk to Yang Zhengming to make Guan Fanyun stop harassing Yang Dole. Lin Qinhe walked back to his room without turning on the light. He sat down on the recliner on the open-air balcony. After a moment of silence, he took out his mobile phone and found out that Tao Xi had sent him several WeChat messages half an hour ago: Qiao xue jie told me just now I have another painting sold at the exhibition, sold for 20,000! Ill treat you to good food on the weekend. Its okay even if its expensive, Im a rich man now. Behind was a series of animal emoticons, cats, dogs, chickens, ducks and geese who were happily jumping around, looking very awkward. Lin Qinhe looked at the animated pictures, raised the corners of his mouth and smiled. He glanced at the time, just after the second period of night study, so he called directly. Wait for me, I will leave the classroom immediately. After the phone was connected, came Tao Xis urgent voice, as well as the sound of footsteps and the fading classroom noise. Okay, you can talk. Have you resolved the matter at home? Lin Qinhe looked at the shadows of the trees outside the balcony, like a huge mist locking the villa. He said, Solved. When did you participate in the painting exhibition again, why didnt you tell me? I just gave a painting to Teacher, and he helped me in the exhibition. I didnt know it could actually sell for so much money! Tao Xi couldnt hide his excitement in his tone and continued: Im thinking about selling more paintings and making a lot of money in the future. I want to buy a big house, preferably the kind with a yard. We can plant some flowers and plants in the yard, oh no, you have a pollen allergy, then raise a cat and a dog Wait, you are not allergic to cats and dogs hair, right? Lin Qinhe said with some laughter, Not allergic. Tao Xi seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and continued to speak freely: Thats good, and then we have to travel to a place every year. You take the picture, I will paint next to you, and I can hold an art exhibition when I come back, and I can also hold a photography exhibition for you Lin Qinhe lay back leisurely on the recliner, looking at the fuzzy moon in the sky and listening to Tao Xi planning their future. He found that Tao Xi almost never mentioned his family and past, except for the sick sister, in Tao Xis heart, it seemed like there was only a bright future, and him. What do you think of my plan? Tao Xi paused and asked nervously. Lin Qinhe asked, Just one place a year? If we have time, of course we can go to more places, but I think you might be very busy with your work by then. Tao Xi said. The two talked aimlessly about the future for a few minutes, until Tao Xi urged, Its time for class, I have to hang up. Before hanging up, Lin Qinhe said, You havent given me todays cartoon yet. Tao Xi said, You left too suddenly today, Ill make sure to give it to you tomorrow! He said as he walked towards the classroom, muttering in a low voice. Im not going to draw you a little comic for the rest of your life! Lin Qinhe heard this and let out a laugh, saying with certainty, Of course. After hanging up the phone, Lin Qinhe opened WeChat again and only then remembered that Su Yun had sent him a message earlier. It was Su Yuns additional information about applying for school. He forwarded all the information to Tao Xi, then clicked on Su Yuns dialog box again. He originally wanted Su Yun to help him buy back the painting Tao Xi had just sold, but after thinking about it, he gave it up. There would be many people like him in the future who would buy Tao Xis paintings and treasure them. Lin Qinhe got up from the recliner, went back to the room and turned on the light. He opened the locked box in the bookcase and took out a booklet inside. This was all the cartoons Tao Xi had drawn for him so far, all of it were carefully bound by him according to the date. When he opened the comic book, it was like opening a copy of One Thousand and One Nights that belonged only to him. In fact, he had no interest in stories and comics since he was a child, but he remembered when he was very young, he also expected Luo Zhengyin to tell him bedtime stories, just like she told Yang Duole stories in his room every night. Lin Qinhe looked down at the first page of the comic book, the first comic Tao Xi drew for him. Moon: Are you a star? Small meteorite: Im just a little meteorite now, but Ill become a little star that shines one day. Moon: Why do you want to become a star? Little meteorite: Because then I can illuminate you in the universe like the sun. T/N: Im so soft listening to Tao Xi planning their future. Also, due to sudden workload irl, update gonna be irregular until 15th Sep the latest CH 43 Tao Xi quickly received 20,000 yuan from the sale of paintings and remitted 10,000 of them to Tao Le. When he was learning painting on Sunday, he asked Qiao Henian about the person who bought the painting. Only then did he know that the buyer was an amateur speculative painter who specialized in buying some paintings that were not yet famous but were promising, to be sold at a high price later. In fact, Qiao Henian learned through his granddaughter that Tao Xis family was in bad condition, so he asked someone to sell his students paintings so that he could subsidize his living and painting expenses, but he was afraid that Tao Xi would get into the eyes of the money, so said to him in a serious tone: In the future, as your paintings become more mature, more paintings will enter the market, but your artistic pursuit must not be too market-oriented, and you must not be completely bought by money, got it? I know, grandpa. Tao Xi naturally obediently said yes, Qiao Henian was a very good teacher. In addition to teaching him to paint, he also teaches him many principles of life and work. He also changed his title from teacher to grandfather. Well, this is all weve learned today. The weather is good, Im going out fishing with some old friends later, you go out and relax too. Qiao Henian put down his tools and said. Tao Xi was overjoyed. He had an appointment with Lin Qinhe in the evening, but now he had a few more hours. He sent a WeChat message to Lin Qinhe and then helped Qiao Henian clean up his studio. So happy to be able to go out to play? Qiao Henian looked at the overjoyed Tao Xi with amusement, thinking that even a well-behaved child was playful. Tao Xi sweetly coaxed Qiao Henian with a few words again and helped him prepare the sun hat and water cup for fishing. He sent Qiao Henian out of the courtyard, and then waited in the courtyard for Lin Qinhe to come and pick him up. The weather was really good. The old red-brick and green-tiled houses were basking lazily in the warm winter sun. The tall Old sycamore left only the gray and green trunks and branches and the tarmac was covered with calm, watery sycamore leaves and mottled light. The wind and sunshine were very quiet, just like his mood for waiting for Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi was sitting on a bench bored and playing with a sycamore leaf when Lin Qinhe arrived less than half an hour later. He saw Lin Qinhe walk into the courtyard gate, hurriedly got up a few steps and jumped over, showing Lin Qinhe the sycamore leaves as if offering treasures: Look, this leaf is so beautiful and big. Tao Xi used the leaf to cover his face and asked with a smile, Is it bigger than my head? Lin Qinhe held Tao Xis hand that was squeezing the leaf, gently moving it away to reveal Tao Xis face. Looking at the eyes that were slightly open and the pupils that were clear as glazed in the golden sunlight, the corners of his lips lifted and he said. Its very beautiful. Tao Xi was stunned, thinking that he clearly did not ask this question. He put the leaves on the stone table in the courtyard and got into the car with Lin Qinhe. The original plan was to invite Lin Qinhe to dinner, but suddenly there were a few more hours, so he wanted to change his plan. Can I invite you to the amusement park first? I havent been there yet. TaoXi asked. Okay. Lin Qinhe agreed. In fact, he had hardly been there, the only one or two times was to accompany Yang Duole. Due to weekends and good weather, the amusement park was extremely crowded and the two queued for nearly twenty minutes before entering. Tao Xi wanted to hold Lin Qinhes hand, but he was embarrassed because there were too many people, so he had to follow Lin Qinhe closely. Seeing all kinds of rides made him feel fresh and wanting to play. I want to play that. Tao Xi pointed to a haunted house not far away. His abacus rang, thinking that he would be able to hold Lin Qinhes hand unscrupulously in the dark environment. Lin Qinhe looked at the haunted house and nodded in agreement. The two bought tickets and Tao Xi realized that this haunted house did not seem to be the horror and thriller he thought. They didnt need to walk, but instead rode in a small train to go inside. Many children were accompanied by their parents into the carriages and the carriages were also painted with childish cartoon characters. Tao Xi looked at the children in the car and said to Lin Qinhe with some embarrassment: This haunted house seems to be different from what I thought. He found that apart from the parents, only two of them were over twelve years old. Some adults and staff were looking at them in amusement. Should we change to another house? he asked. No need. Tao Xis right hand was suddenly held by Lin Qinhe. His heart jumped and he tilted his head to look at Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe pulled him into the last narrow carriage and whispered to him: Now, can hold hands. Tao Xis eyelashes fluttered gently looking at the side of Lin Qinhes face. He felt Lin Qinhe put his five fingers between his fingers, clasping his palm against his palm, so tightly that they seemed to be able to feel each others heartbeats through their palms. As a bell rang, the small train slowly started, driving into the dark haunted house amidst the chatter of children. Perhaps this should be called the elves house. In the ethereal music, the graceful light and shadow cast a spinning and dancing elves and ghosts, performing close and unpredictable stories in the seemingly hazy mist. Although it was not terrifying and even a little beautiful, many children were still frightened and cried in their parents arms, destroying the original dream. Tao Xi felt the warmth of the five-finger grip with Lin Qinhe, and suddenly leaned closer to Lin Qinhe, turning sideways and pressing his chest against Lin Qinhes arm. Are you afraid? Lin Qinhe sensed Tao Xis reliance and asked in a low voice while turning his head in his ear. The small train drove into the straight narrow road. Under the dim light and shadow, Tao Xi suddenly got up slightly and kissed Lin Qinhes lips. Nothing went wrong this time. His pupils were shining, and he whispered to Lin Qinhe triumphantly: Ive learned! Lin Qinhes grip on his hand suddenly increased. Before Tao Xi could react, he was pushed to the soft wall of the carriage beside him, and then an eager kiss fell on his lips. Lin Qinhe did not directly enter his mouth, but first sucked and nibbled his lower lip lightly, and then left slightly, leaving him a little space to breathe in. The right hand that was clasped was pressed lingeringly and the palm of his hand was so hot that he almost sweated. He didnt know whether to focus on his lips or his hands for a moment, but he felt that his whole person was hot. As if perceiving his distraction, Lin Qinhe intruded into his mouth, crossing his lips and tongue, holding the tip of his tongue and sucking lightly. Tao Xis head buzzed and he couldnt breathe again. After the kiss, Tao Xi leaned against the carriage to catch his breath and looked around very nervously, the small train had just pulled out of the narrow way and entered a spacious ballroom. The little girl in the carriage in front suddenly turned her head and looked at them. Tao Xis eyelids twitched and she lowered her head sheepishly. When the two came out of the haunted house, Tao Xi suddenly returned from the dark to the warm and bright sunlight and was a little uncomfortable, squinting his eyes to adapt to the light. Lin Qinhe still held his hand out of the carriage. Others will see it. Tao Xi let Lin Qinhe lead him, but still reminded him. Look, every child is holding hands. Lin Qinhe said dismissively. Tao Xi froze and looked at the small children who came down from the carriage. Indeed every child was being held by their parents. Some of the children were so scared that they cried all the way, their faces full of tear marks like a small flower cat. And he. Tao Xi licked his somewhat swollen lower lip and looked away again with a guilty conscience. Suddenly, Tao Xi looked up at Lin Qinhe again. He squinted his eyes and asked: Why do I feel like you are very experienced? You havent had a lot of love before, have you? Lin Qinhe tucked Tao Xis hand into his coat pocket and led him outside, answering with a calm face. No. Then how did I.. Tao Xi muttered and stopped halfway. How what? Lin Qinhe turned his head to look at him and raised his eyebrows slightly. Tao Xi got stuck and said, No, nothing! It was just a matter of gaining experience in the real world. He was so smart, he would learn as soon as he could. The two played some more rides. Tao Xi rode the roller coasters, pirate ships, and bumper cars that he had seen on TV before It was all played with Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi found that although Lin Qinhe didnt say anything, he seemed to like playing these rides very much. He could clearly feel Lin Qinhes unspoken joy. So later Tao Xi observed which rides Lin Qinhes eyes stopped at for a little longer, and he took Lin Qinhe to play. Until it was evening when the dusk was heavy, the two finally gave up to continue playing and sat on a bench to rest. Tao Xi went to the small shop and bought two ice creams, one strawberry flavour and one vanilla flavour. He and Lin QInhe ate slowly. Although it was winter, the cold taste did not make people feel cold. The setting sun just hung in the center of the Ferris wheel in the distant sky, the orange twilight looking at them through the citys eye. The two of them were very close. Tao Xi occasionally scooped a spoonful from Lin Qinhes vanilla ice cream. Later, Lin Qinhe didnt eat much, so Tao Xi simply took over. There were two little boys of seven or eight years old sitting down on the bench opposite, the little boy in red lowered his head to play with the Rubiks cube in his hand. After a long time, he still couldnt solve it. Stupid. The little boy in blue clothes snatched the Rubiks Cube, but he too couldnt solve it after a long time. The two children quarreled, calling each other idiots, and began to cry as they quarreled. Tao Xi couldnt stand it anymore and went over to help them solve the cube, but after he turned it, he didnt get it right, so he subconsciously looked at Lin Qinhe, who had already followed Lin Qinhe took the Rubiks Cube and his slender fingers turned quickly. He solved the Rubiks Cube in less than fifteen seconds. Wow, the two children looked at Lin Qinhe with their heads lifted up. Tao Xi also looked at his boyfriend with admiring eyes, followed by wow and said, How can you know everything. Lin Qinhe bent down to return the Rubiks Cube to the children, the corners of his mouth raised, and said: When I was young, I used to play it when I was bored. After doing good deeds, the two of them returned to the bench and sat down to admire the sunset in the city side by side. Tao Xi watched the two children walking away hand in hand, and suddenly asked Lin Qinhe. You say, if, I mean if, I grew up with you, will you still like me, ah? He turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, the magnificent twilight softened Lin Qinhes profoundly good-looking side face, like an oil painting with rich colors. Yes. Lin Qinhe replied without hesitation. Tao Xi was stunned. He curled his eyes and said, So sure? What if I was spoiled by my parents and I was a very willful child, would you still like me? Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xi in the twilight light and whispered. I said, I will like all your willfulness. He reached out and wiped away a bit of the milky white trace of ice cream from the side of Tao Xis mouth, and continued. Besides, you would definitely not be so spoiled. Tao Xi licked the corner of his mouth, not knowing why his eyes were a little sore, he blinked and did not ask the question again. He looked at the setting sun that had been half swallowed, and the twilight turned from red gold to orange and purple, smearing the sky with thick ink. Tao Xi couldnt help but think, what was Lin Qinhe like when he was a child? Was he also not talkative like now? If, if he had grown up with Lin Qinhe, he would have pestered him every day to make him speak and laugh. He was so good at fighting, he would not let anyone bully Lin Qinhe, he would definitely share all the delicious and fun things with Lin Qinhe, and he would definitely send the best gifts on Lin Qinhes birthday every year. Perhaps, like those two kids, he would turn the Rubiks Cube into a mess, and Lin Qinhe would scold him for being a fool, but he would always help him get better. In spring he would drag Lin Qinhe around the road without flowers to school, in summer they would grab watermelon after swimming to eat, in autumn they would climb the maple forest hill together, pick up two red leaves to make bookmarks for each other. In winter, they would throw snowballs at each other in the heavy snow, and when they were tired, they would lie down with their legs and arms spread on the snow next to each other. On weekends, he would go to learn musical instruments with Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe would learn piano, he would learn violin, and then they would perform together in the schools cultural performance. During the long vacation, they would fly abroad with their parents. He used a brush to paint the scenery, while Lin Qinhe used the lens to photograph the scenery and him. And there were many, many more. They would definitely have a wonderful childhood and adolescence together. Tao Xi took a deep breath, shook off the illusion in his mind, and suddenly stretched his cold hand to the neck of Lin Qinhes collar. Sure enough, Lin Qinhe was caught off guard by the chill, and quickly grabbed his evil hand, and then put his hand in his coat pocket. Lin Qinhe was not angry about the prank. Instead, he wrapped his hand with warm hands in the pocket, looked at him and asked. What were you thinking about just now? Thinking about where to invite you to dinner tonight. Tao Xi pulled Lin Qinhe up from the bench. He thought that life was still so long, and that long would belong to him and Lin Qinhe. There seemed to be nothing to regret. The author has something to say: Fall in love today CH 44 It might be because the final exam was around the corner, so the physical education class was spared by the teacher. The PE teacher let the students go free after doing a few exercises as usual. Tao Xi signed up for the TOEFL exam in January and was about to join Lin Qinhe to find a place to study when he was suddenly grabbed by a hand on his shoulder. Xi ge! Bi Chengfei grinned while holding the basketball. He was about to say hello to Lin Qinhe, but for some reason the hand that was holding Tao Xi was first consciously released, and he said to Lin Qinhe, Lin xueshen! As soon as Tao Xi saw the basketball in Bi Chengfeis hand, he knew what this person was asking him for. He directly refused: I dont want to play. Bi Chengfei begged with a bitter face, Xi ge, please help me again. The class president has promised me, and I have a match with the second class sports committee. The enemy has Xu Ziqi, you dont want to fight them? He naturally did not dare to seek help from Lin Qinhe and only encouraged Tao Xi. Tao Xi looked behind him. Not far away, Li Xiaoyuan was waiting for Bi Chengfei to find a team member with a Bodhisattva-like face, showing him a helpless smile. He felt that this scene was like a dj vu, his heart was moved. Looking at Lin Qinhe on the side, he asked, Can you play a game of basketball with me? Bi Chengfei immediately clasped his hands together and looked at Lin Qinhe with a begging gaze. Lin Qinhe didnt hesitate much and said, Can. Bi Chengfei was overjoyed, thanked the two of them, and ran away to find other players. Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe walked together slowly towards the basketball court. As he walked, he kicked the plastic pieces on the lawn of the field and suddenly said to Lin Qinhe: Actually, in the basketball game after school started, I persuaded Bi Chengfei to go find you. At that time, he had just learned that Yang Duole was the person he was exchanged with and was full of resentment. He tried to attract Lin Qinhes attention in every way possible, and even used a very stupid method. I know. Lin Qinhe said. Looking at Tao Xi, he asked with some playfulness in his eyes. Otherwise, do you think I will agree to Bi Chengfei? Tao Xi was startled, his heart seemed to be poked lightly with a finger. He unconsciously stopped in his tracks, looked at Lin Qinhe incredulously and asked. Isnt it because Bi Chengfei promised not to disturb you in the future? Lin Qinhes expression seemed a little speechless, saying, Will I believe that he would keep his promise and shut up from now on? Tao Xi shook his head, believing in a ghost was better than believing in Bi Chengfeis mouth. However, he pursed his lips and complained in a small voice, But you seemed to hate me at that time. He remembered Lin Qinhes appearance that was colder than Antarctica at the time, and now he still had some lingering fears when he thought about it. Lin Qinhe frowned slightly, as if reflecting on his attitude at that time before saying seriously, Im sorry, but I never hated you. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe in astonishment. He didnt expect Lin Qinhe to say sorry, the small bit of complaint was immediately gone, and he reflected on himself: Its okay, I have my own problems! Lin Qinhe asked, Whats the problem? I Tao Xi tilted his head to reflect deeply and suddenly reacted. He turned his head, and sure enough, Lin Qinhe held a little smile at the corner of his mouth. Good guy, if someone was sorry, let him take all the faults. With Lin Qinhes participation, Bi Chengfei quickly found a few more players. In the end, there were 9 players in the Class 1 team and 10 in the Class 2 team. In fact, everyone was an old acquaintance, but the second team members did not expect Lin Qinhe to come again, so many people wanted to escape. Xu Ziqi saw Lin Qinhe and Tao Xi talking all the way over and turned his head to look at Yang Duole at the edge of the court, and saw that Yang Duoles face did not look too good. Tao Xi took off his jacket, moved his arms and legs, and said to Lin Qinhe, Lets see which one of us can get more points. Lin Qinhe handed Tao Xi the wrist brace he had temporarily bought and told him, Pay attention to your wrist, dont get hurt. Tao Xi took the turquoise bracelet off and put it in his pocket, put the wrist brace on, and then put another one on Lin Qinhe. The playground was already full of girls who had come after hearing the news. It was very lively even before the game started. Tao Xi found out that many girls were screaming when he put the wristband on for Lin Qinhe but he didnt understand what these people were screaming for. The game started very quickly. Tao Xi, Lin Qinhe and Li Xiaoyuan still had the excellent cooperation as before. Not long after the opening, Tao Xi covered Lin Qinhe to get a three-pointer first, pushing the atmosphere of the whole court to the first climax. After the goal, Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe high-fived each other on the run and Lin Qinhe said to him, Let you get the points next time. Tao Xi replied: Okay! The Class 2 sports committee heard this and thought angrily that this was a competition, not a place for you to flirt and give points to each other! There was still no suspense in the game. Class 2 was beaten out of temper and crushed from start to finish. The girls in class two were too lazy to cheer on the boys in their class and followed the girls in Class 1 to cheer and watch handsome guys. In the end, Tao Xi scored three points less than Lin Qinhe. He propped his hands on his knees and panted, saying to Lin Qinhe, I will definitely get more points than you next time. Lin Qinhe also had a thin layer of sweat on his face. He threw the ball in his hand to Bi Chengfei and said to Tao Xi, I will take you to the school team next time. Many players in Class 2 heard this and their faces turned blue and red for a while. Tao Xi couldnt help but be happy, straightened up and said, Okay, that must be more interesting than today. Sure enough, the faces of Class 2 members were a little more stinky. He took off the wristbands indifferently, took out the bracelets in his pockets and put them on his wrists. Li Xiaoyuan glanced at the girls who were holding mineral water but did not dare to step forward, feeling that it was a pity in his heart. He said to the team members in his class: Wait for me, I will buy a few bottles of water. As soon as the voice fell, he saw Yang Duole running over with a few bottles of water. Li Xiaoyuan hurriedly went over to help Yang Duole fetch water and smiled: Yakult, come back to Class 1. You see the members of Class 2 are staring at you. Ill be admitted at the end of the semester! Yang Duole said with his mouth tilted. He handed Lin Qinhe a bottle of mineral water in his hand and shouted in a flattering tone, Qinhe ge. Lin Qinhe took the water from Yang Duole and said thank you. Tao Xi noticed the slightly strange atmosphere between Lin Qinhe and Yang Duole. He watched Yang Duole continue to pass the second bottle of water to him so he raised his right hand to take the mineral water, but found that Yang Duole did not let go. Yang Duole stared at the red rope on Tao Xis wrist, his gaze paused for only a second, and quickly let go. Tao Xi said thank you as usual. After the basketball game ended soon after class, Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe to the cafeteria to eat. On the way Tao Xi asked Lin Qinhe: By the way, do other people know about the bracelet you gave me? Lin Qinhe thought about it and replied: Only Qiao Yitang knows, whats wrong? He asked Qiao Yitang, who knew better about jewelry. No one else would know. Nothing, just asking casually. Tao Xi said. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xi and did not ask again. Tao Xi looked at the red rope on his wrist, his mind swept over Yang Duoles expression when he saw the bracelet just now. Although it only appeared for a moment, he also caught the strong hatred in Yang Duoles eyes at that time. There was also a somewhat unnatural look from him when he ran into Yang Duole during this time. He had always been very sensitive to the emotions expressed by others towards him. Yang Duoles hatred for him could only come from Lin Qinhe, but if it was just because his good friend had a good relationship with others, he should never look like that. But Yang Duole didnt know that this bracelet was given by Lin Qinhe, so where did his hatred come from after seeing the bracelet? What right did he have to hate himself? Tao Xi frowned, remembering the red peace knot in Yang Duoles hand that should have belonged to him. During the lunch break, Lin Qinhe went to the competition class for training as usual. Tao Xi waited for Lin Qinhe to leave, and after that, he got up and walked to the guard room at the gate of the school. There was a question in his heart that had not been answered. Uncle, has my dad come here recently? Tao Xi asked the security guard in the guard room who was familiar with him. The security guard was very impressed with the students father, and even annoyed at the mention of this person. He said in a rather unpleasant tone: Did I tell you last time? Ask your dad to come to our school less in the future. When school was over the other night, he squatted in front of the school and I almost caught him as a thief. What is he doing at the door? Tao Xi asked. I was also surprised. He squatted for a while and left. Those who dont know might think he was stalking. The security frowned. Tao Xi was silent for a while and said, Im sorry for causing you trouble, I will definitely talk to him when I have the chance and tell him not to come. He turned and left the guard room. Tao Jian came to him only for money. But he hadnt looked for him,who could he be looking for? CH 45 Towards the end of the year, Wenhua No. 1 High School was bombarded with tests one after another. An English quiz made most of Class 1 sluggish. The English class representative Jin Jing walked in with the papers of the whole class, knocked on the podium and said: Wake up. Wake up and dont sleep, the papers are about to be sent out. Teacher Bi said this time the papers are doing poorly. There will definitely be a fire in class later. The students bemoaned the devilish speed of Bi Aoxues grading and a boy shouted to Jin Jing: Class representative, why do I feel like youre still happy? Did you get a high score on the exam? Jin Jing smiled and scolded the boy with a few words. Bi Chengfei suddenly appeared on the podium and raised his hand and said loudly, Isnt this a happy event? Big news! This Sunday night, the grand private room 225, the birthday party of the beautiful Jin Jing. Everyone must come ah! I will also go! The class started cheering and in uproar. Jin Jing hit Bi Chengfei on the head with the papers and scolded, Who said you are going to be invited! Tao Xi knew about this. Just now, Jin Jing gave him a homemade invitation specifically. He looked at Lin Qinhe who was on the side and asked, Will you be there? Lin Qinhe confiscated the invitation with a heart drawn on it and said, Im going to grandpas house on Sunday night. Even if he didnt go to his old home for the family dinner, he usually wouldnt go. Are you going? Lin Qinhe asked Tao Xi. Tao Xi hesitated for a while, and said, I should go. When Jin Jing gave him the invitation, she also apologized to him for Jiang Xinyuns incident a long time ago, but Tao Xi didnt think Jin Jing had done anything wrong. Jin Jing even spoke for him at that time. Then I will pick you up when the matter is over, Lin Qinhe said. Tao Xis eyes lit up and he nodded: Okay! Ill wait for you! On Sunday night, Tao Xi took the bus twice according to the address given by Jin Jing before arriving at the grand club with a high level of consumption. Under the guidance of the waiter, he walked in. The colorful lights and the faint crying and wolf-like singing from the private room made him a little uncomfortable. Tao Xi knew that this was a big KTV. He had never been there and did not like singing very much. He was thinking about finding some reason to leave early when he met an unexpected person halfway through. Tao Xi? Guan Fanyun was wearing a low-cut short skirt studded with gold sequins, with heavy make-up on her face. Holding a slender ladys cigarette in her hand, she asked with a smile, Come to our party? Tao Xi didnt expect that this woman would recognize him by virtue of his once-in-a-lifetime exhibition. He vaguely remembered that Guan Fanyun had sent an invitation to the party in the WeChat group of the Qinghua Painting Association a few days ago. He said, No, I have a classmates birthday party here. Guan Fanyun smiled and said, I wish you a good time. Our party is in the private room 334. She took a puff of her cigarette, came closer and said, I have a lot of friends who have studied overseas, a few of them are here today. Maybe you can meet them later. Tao Xi tilted his head slightly to avoid the smoke from Guan Fanyun. The sweet and greasy smell made him frown. He found Guan Fanyuns sudden enthusiasm a bit baffling and said in a detached tone, Thank you, but my classmates birthday party is about to start, so I have to go there first. Guan Fanyun smiled and said, Its okay. If you think the birthday party is boring, you can come and play with us. After saying goodbye to Guan Fan Yun, Tao Xi went to the bathroom and washed his face to make sure he didnt smell like smoke before stepping on the soft carpet and walking towards the private room. He remembered Guan Fanyun who was next to Yang Zhengming at the exhibition last time. She was dressed in a white dress with light makeup and was different from today. He thought of Fang Suis painting, she was also wearing white dress. He pulled the corners of his mouth and smiled, pushing open the door of the 225 room. Bi Chengfei was holding the standing microphone and singing Say I Love You loudly towards Jin Jing in the middle of the sofa. When Bi Chengfei saw Tao Xi coming in, he stopped singing and shouted, Xi ge! There was a lot of space in the private room. Tao Xi found that most of the classmates had come and even Huang Qing had come. He saw Jin Jing showing a somewhat disappointed look after he entered the door, but she still quickly got up to greet him and said sincerely: Tao Xi, thank you for coming. Have fun tonight. Tao Xi handed the gift in his hand to Jin Jing and said Happy Birthday with a smile. He greeted other classmates and found an empty seat in the corner of the sofa. Next to him was Huang Qing, who was answering questions on her phone. When she saw him sitting down, she asked, Did Lin Qinhe come with you? Tao Xi was stunned, shook his head and said, He has something tonight. Huang Qing seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and continued to answer the questions. The table was full of beer and drinks, the soft pack walls were flashing with multicolored spots of light. After someone ordered a brainwashing song1, some people in the class who were usually active were rushing to grab the microphone to sing like crazy. Suddenly, the crowd of demons danced so dazzlingly that their eardrums would burst. Tao Xi clicked on WeChat in the corner and looked up the party invitation letter sent by Guan Fanyun in the WeChat group of the Qinghua Painting Association. He found that the address above was not here. He thought about it for a while, then clicked on Ding Yannans WeChat and asked her about the party. Ding Yanan quickly replied with a message: The associations formal parties are organized by the president. Vice President Guan has a few friends in the association who play well together and often organize private parties, but we usually dont attend. Tao Xi noticed the cryptic meaning in Ding Yanans words. He thought about it, and told her about his encounter with Guan Fanyun. Ding Yanan replied: Youd better not go. How should I say, the Qinghua Painting Association is actually a bit mixed up, youre still a high school student, theres no need to make those friends Tao Xi replied a few words of thanks, and looked at the chat log thoughtfully. Halfway through, he got up and went to the bathroom. When he came out of the bathroom, he saw two familiar figures walking by the corner of the corridor and heard a female voice saying: Ancestor, I dont have much money to lend you. Tao Xi quickly returned to the bathroom, washed his hands again, and walked out after drying his hands with a paper towel. The carpet in the corridor was very thick and soft, so there was no sound when walking on it. Tao Xi followed the corridor where the two people had just walked, and after turning a corner, he found that there was only one security door at the end of this corridor. There should be an emergency passage outside the door. He breathed lightly and walked gently to the exit door, which was ajar, and human voices faintly came from inside. Guan Fanyun had already smoked the cigarette just now, and she changed it to the same one. Spitting out a puff of smoke, she walked a few steps back and forth and sighed to the boy in front of her: Ancestor, my party address has been changed here specifically for you, and I also invited that kid, so what do you want me to do? There was only a dim white light in the emergency exit. Yang Duole looked up, his eyes were dim in the light and shadow, and he said Didnt I tell you? Please help me teach him a lesson. He said it politely, and his expression was one of asking for help. He smiled and continued, After all, arent you the best at this kind of thing? Guan Fanyun bit her cigarette and stared at Yang Zhengmings son, her face turned ugly for a moment. Her past history was indeed not glamorous. Although her father Guan Shuwen was a famous calligrapher in the literary and art world, she was just an illegitimate daughter with a bad name and did not receive any artistic influence before the age of sixteen. Whats your problem with that kid? As for asking me to help you teach him a lesson? Guan Fanyun breathed out a puff of cigarette, a little annoyed in her heart, not really wanting to get involved in these high school kids affairs. Yang Duoles face sank and said, Its none of your business. Does your father know youre like this? He always said you were a good boy. Guan Fanyun laughed lightly. If she could successfully marry Yang Zhengming, Yang Duole might have to call her mom in the future. It made her feel a little funny. Yang Duole raised his eyes to Guan Fanyun and said with a smile: You certainly wont let him know. All right. Fortunately you said that kid has no background, otherwise Im really afraid of trouble. Guan Fanyun twisted the cigarette in her hand on the white wall and put it out. When Tao Xi returned to the private room, the mic-crazy Bi Chengfei had already changed the song, singing To Love even in Death to Jin Jing, and the tone-deaf throat made Jin Jing keep rolling her eyes He went back to his seat and sat down, and saw Huang Qing was still bowing her head, doing the questions. Not long after sitting, the private room door was opened again. Yakult! Why are you so late! Li Xiaoyuan was holding the microphone and singing and when he saw Yang Duole come in, he directly spoke to Yang Duole with the microphone. Tao Xi looked up and saw Yang Duole holding a box of exquisitely wrapped gifts. There has been a traffic jam on the road for too long. I dashed up when I got out of the car just now. Im still gasping for breath. Yang Duole said with a smile to Li Xiaoyuan. After giving the gift to Jin Jing, he looked around the sofa and walked towards the empty space in the corner. Tao Xi saw Yang Duole approaching and asked him with a smile, Tao Xi, can I sit next to you? The look and tone of voice even had a little intimacy. Tao Xi moved to the side and nodded, Sure. Yang Duole said Thank you and then sat down. There was a sweet and greasy smell of smoke on his body that had not had time to disperse. He watched Li Xiaoyuan and the others sing, smiled and applauded, seemed to be very happy. Tao Xi saw an unopened pack of cigarettes under the coffee table. Perhaps the last guests accidentally dropped it here and it was not cleaned up. He took out the pack of cigarettes, took out one after unpacking and handed it to Yang Duole before raising his eyes and asked him: Do you smoke? Yang Duole frowned, looked a little weird, and shook his head: I never smoke. Tao Xi smiled, put the cigarette back into the box and said, I dont smoke either. He tossed the cigarette back under the coffee table and leaned back on the soft sofa, watching Li Xiaoyuan invite Yang Duole up to sing. basically a catchy song that easily stuck in your head CH 46 In the second half of the birthday party, a huge multi-layer cake was pushed in by the waiter. The private room that had been noisy for two hours was finally quieter. Seventeen candles were lit on the exquisite cake. Jin Jing made a wish with her eyes closed while everyone sang Happy Birthday. Beauty, what did you wish for? I guess its a wish to be with the person you like? A girl followed, and many people instantly understood and passed a few glances to each other and laughed, as if they knew who Jin Jing liked. Jin Jing squinted at those people and scolded them: Dont make trouble! Its not this wish. It wont work if you say it. Tao Xi surrounded the big cake like everyone else, watching Jin Jing cut the cake piece by piece and distributed it to everyone. He took the cake Jin Jing handed over and said thank you. When she gave it to Yang Duole, Jin Jing smiled and said to Yang Duole: Yakult, its your birthday next. Will you invite us to have a Christmas birthday party at home this year like last year? Li Xiaoyuan followed and said, Yes, I also want to ask, I remember last year was held at Lin Qinhes house, Auntie Luo also prepared a Christmas gift for each of us. As soon as they heard the three words Lin Qinhe, everyone started booing Jin Jing again. No wonder she asked Yang Duole this question. Jin Jing blushed and and scolded a few words. Tao Xi looked at Yang Duole and saw that the person whose birthday was on the same day as him was unnatural for a moment. He took the cake from Jin Jing and smiled: Of course it will be done. After Yang Duole finished speaking, he looked at Tao Xi subconsciously. With a piece of cake in his hand, Tao Xi smiled at him with his head tilted. Yang Duole quickly retracted his gaze, pursed his lips, walked to the sofa and sat down, picking up the phone as if he was sending some news. Tao Xi picked up a small fork and ate the cake in his hand. The taste of the cake was very sweet and delicate. He used to eat birthday cake only occasionally on his classmates birthdays, but the cakes sold in the best cake shops in the county were very rough in texture. Then the next one is Tao Xi, right? I remember it was on December 26th, very close to Yakult. Li Xiaoyuan asked as he walked up to Tao Xi. As class president, he had memorized the birthdays of every student in the class. Its very close to him, almost the same day. Tao Xi took a bite of cake and looked at Yang Duole before he replied. Yang Duole buried his head, the finger on the phone screen paused. It might be due to Guo Pings guilty conscience. Tao Xis birthday on his household registration was December 26, while Tao Les birthday is on December 28. Over the years, Tao Xi had been following Tao Le to eat a bowl of longevity noodles on the 28th, considered it as for his birthday. He didnt know the day his mother gave birth to him until last year. The birthday party was about to end. A group of people who had drunk were still crying and howling. Tao Xis phone vibrated, he took it out and took a look. As if calculating the time, Guan Fanyun sent him a WeChat message: I have a friend who came here just now. He graduated from the California Institute of the Art, and he studied oil painting just like you. Now his reputation is not small. I heard that you want to apply to a school in the United States. How about introducing you to this big shot? The other person is very nice, you can ask him any questions you have. Tao Xi stared at the message, the bright light of the screen condensed in the dark pupils. He slowly raised his head, his face half bright and half dark. Yang Duole was discussing his birthday party with a few people with a smile, not noticing his sight. Tao Xi lowered his head and slowly typed on the screen, Okay, thank you. Guan Fanyun quickly replied, No problem. Which private room are you in, Ill take you there. Tao Xi replied to her with the room number, held the phone in his hand, and went to talk to Jin Jing. Jin Jing thought that Tao Xi had to go back to the dormitory and as there was a curfew, he didnt want to stay. She asked him to pay attention to safety on the road. During this time, Yang Duole kept looking at this side from his side. Tao Xi didnt look back. After bidding farewell to other classmates, he opened the private room door and walked out, closing the door behind him and separating all the noise. Guan Fanyun was walking in high heels in the corridor. Tao Xi could smell the alcohol and the strong smell of smoke on this woman from a long distance. He lowered his eyelashes slightly to cover his disgust. Guan Fanyun walked to Tao Xi with a cigarette in his hand, and looked at the fair-skinned boy in front of her. His temperament of being a good student was too obvious that he was a little out of place with this place. She squinted her eyes and smiled, and said in a cordial tone: Did you say goodbye to your classmates? Tao Xi glanced at the door he had just closed and nodded. Lets go, my friend will be here for a while. Guan Fanyun said. She didnt want to stay here long. But Tao Xi didnt move, he raised his eyes to Guan Fanyun and said, President Guan, I suddenly remembered that I have a classmate who should also be able to go to your party with me. The smile on Guan Fanyuns face froze for a moment. She looked into Tao Xis eyes and a strange feeling emerged in her heart, but she quickly responded, They shouldnt be a member of our association, so they cant participate. Tao Xi made a regretful Ah and said: But you should know him. I saw you and Uncle Yang together last time to see the exhibition. Uncle Yangs son, Yang Duole, dont you know him? At the top of the corridor, the dim spotlights shot down obliquely, casting elongated cross shadows under his fine eyelashes, gently shifting between blinks. Guan Fanyun finally understood where the strange feeling in her heart came from. Tao Xis eyes were a bit like her, or rather more like the person she tried to imitate. She was smiling clearly, but the coldness made her palms feel cold. She subconsciously avoided Tao Xis gaze that was looking straight at her, and her face was astonished: Of course I know, did Lele come here today? Tao Xi nodded and said, Yes, he is still inside. Ill call him out and see you. Guan Fanyun saw that Tao Xi was about to go back and opened the door, so she hurriedly took his arm and squeezed out a smile: No, actually he doesnt really want to see me, we hardly see each other. Its just a coincidence today. Tao Xi calmly broke away from Gu Fanyuns dark-green nail polish hand. He said, Really? After a pause, he smiled at Guan Fanyun and said, as if to himself, I thought you changed the address of the meeting here to invite Yang Duole to your meeting. Guan Fanyuns heart jolted and she looked at Tao Xi in disbelief. Those eyes were staring at her, and there was no emotion in the dark pupils, only the shadow of the eyelashes cast on the lower eyelid flicked slightly. She almost felt that Tao Xi had seen her intentions. President Guan, can we meet your friends now? Tao Xi asked. Guan Fanyun did not dare to look back at Tao Xis eyes, tightly squeezing the cigarette in her hand, her heart was in a mess. For a moment she was a little hesitant whether to continue with her original plan. After a few seconds, she finally made her decision: Lets go, my friend will be here for a while. Tao Xi put the phone in his pocket, and a mocking smile evoked at the corner of his mouth. He was about to go with Guan Fanyun when he suddenly saw a figure at the corner at the end of the corridor, his footsteps instantly paused. Lin Qinhe first looked at Tao Xi and frowned slightly, and when he saw the woman beside Tao Xi, his frown deepened. Why did you come over so fast? Tao Xi asked as he walked to Lin Qinhe quickly. Lin Qinhe stared at Tao Xis eyes, trying to find out the gloomy look he had just seen in these eyes, but that seemed to be just an illusion, Tao Xi looked at him with a gaze that clearly only had dependence and happiness in it. Lin Qinhe didnt answer, he held Tao Xis wrist and pulled him behind him, then looked at Guan Fanyun whose eyes were a bit evasive and asked, What are you guys talking about? Guan Fanyun obviously sensed Lin Qin Hes hostility towards her, she pulled out a somewhat stiff smile, Tao Xi is a member of our Qinghua Painting Association, Im planning to introduce a friend to him. Her tone was natural, but her heart was in a panic. It was impossible for her to not know this young master of the Lin family who grew up with Yang Duole. She also knew that he had a deep background and could not be offended. Like his mother Luo Zhengyin, he hated Yang Zhengming as much as she did, let alone her. Lin Qinhe did not believe all of it. He turned his head to look at Tao Xi and asked, Is that so? Tao Xi nodded, didnt say anything, his eyes dropping to look at his toes. Lin Qinhe looked at Guan Fanyun with a smile at the corners of his mouth, his voice was without emotion: What friend? Can I also get to know them? Guan Fanyun had already figured out a countermeasure just now. She raised her hand and pretended to look at the phone. Showing an apologetic look, she said to the two of them: Unfortunately, my friend suddenly sent me a WeChat saying that something is going on and hell have to leave later. Im sorry, Ill find another opportunity to invite you guys to meet me next time. Ill go back first. Lin Qinhe looked at Guan Fanyuns hidden anxiety and guilty conscience, and said, Okay, please give my regards to Uncle Yang. Guan Fanyuns eyelids jumped and said with a smile, No problem, Zhengming has always wanted to visit you and your mother too. Lin Qinhe watched Guan Fanyun walk away. He turned around and looked at Tao Xi who had not spoken, his tone became serious: Whats the matter? It was impossible for him to fail to see Guan Fanyuns strange attitude, and it was even more impossible for him to fail to see Tao Xis abnormality. For the person in front of him, he had always been keenly aware of all his emotions. Tao Xi was really guilty. He still couldnt tell Lin Qinhe what he had encountered here tonight and what he planned just now, but Lin Qinhe was staring at him inquisitively. His gaze made him unable to make up a reasonable lie. He glanced at the empty room with the door ajar by the corridor, suddenly grabbed Lin Qinhes wrist, pulled Lin Qinhe into the room, and then closed the door abruptly. There was no light in the room, only the faint flickering light of the song-ordering screen. Tao Xi stretched out his arms to hug Lin Qinhes neck and buried himself in Lin Qinhes arms. His lips pressed to the skin of Lin Qinhes neck. He took a deep breath and whispered: I miss you a little bit. Lin Qinhe was visibly stunned, slowly raised his hand to hug the person in his arms back and said with a smile in his voice: Isnt it not even a day apart? Tao Xi rubbed his lips against Lin Qinhes neck and felt the hands on his waist clasp tighter. He said: In the past few weeks, you have been going to training and competition every day. I often cant see you at noon and evening. I cant see you even more when you go home at night. Lin Qinhe raised his hand and rubbed the back of Tao Xis head, whispering, Wait for me for a while, soon. Tao Xi thought that Lin Qinhe was talking about waiting for the end of the competition. His chin rested on Lin Qinhes shoulders, his eyelashes drooping, no one could see the emotions surging in his eyes, as if he was hesitating about something. After about five seconds, Tao Xi made a decision and said to Lin Qinhe. When your competition is over, I want to tell you a secret. His greatest secret. He knew that now was not the best time to say it. This incident would surely cause shocks among several family members and Lin Qinhe was still preparing for the competition. It would definitely affect him. Lin Qinhe was silent for two seconds before he asked: Does it have something to do with Yang Duole? Tao Xis body froze in an instant. He looked at Lin Qinhes eyes through the faint light, and for a moment he was not sure whether Lin Qinhe knew about it. In fact, he was not as confident as he thought. After hearing the dialogue between Guan Fanyun and Yang Duole, he felt uncontrollably angry and ironic. What qualifications did Yang Duole have to teach him? But then came the panic, why should Yang Duole teach him? He had enjoyed sixteen years of pampering that should have been his, but would these favors suddenly disappear with the exposure of his life experience? Impossible, he knew that if you keep pets for sixteen years, you would have feelings, let alone people? He didnt even dare to tell Lin Qinhe the truth about tonight, because he couldnt be sure whether Lin Qinhe would believe him. At one end of the scale was a friend who had been close as a brother for sixteen years, and at the other end was a lover who had been together for less than two months. He could not be confident about which one was more important. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe and did not answer his question, but asked a somewhat inexplicable question. What if, what I want to do will make it very difficult for you? After tonight, it was no longer possible for him to tolerate him and Yang Duole living peacefully under one roof, pretending that nothing was going on. But what would Lin Qinhe think about this matter then? Would he defend Yang Duole? Lin Qinhe lowered his eyes slightly and looked at Tao Xis eyes. These eyes were filled with a certain uneasiness that he did not yet know. During the few seconds of his silence, the uneasiness seemed to be more intense. Why would I be in a difficult situation? Lin Qinhe asked rhetorically, he hadnt encountered anything too difficult yet. Tao Xi was made even more uneasy by Lin Qinhes look. He averted his gaze, thought for a moment and said, For example, it might require you to make some kind of choice or something like that. Choose between you and someone else? Lin Qinhe asked. Tao Xi was stunned by Lin Qinhes keenness, he nodded hesitantly. But in the next second a hand fell on his head, rubbing it not too lightly, and the always cold and bland voice of Lin Qinhe rang in his ears. If its this kind of choice, dont worry about me being difficult, I will favor you unconditionally. Tao Xi suddenly opened his eyes and stared at Lin Qinhe stupidly. At that moment, he didnt know how to react. He knew that Lin Qinhe was not a person who liked to express himself, but whenever he was confused, Lin Qinhe always seemed to be able to put his mind at ease with the simplest of words. He blinked quickly and jokingly said, What if I commit a crime? Lin Qinhe smiled a little at the corner of his mouth, raised his chin slightly, and said, What crime can you commit? Tao Xi thought for a moment, narrowed his eyes and said, Kidnapping you? Tying Lin Qinhe to a place where there was no one, there would be no need to worry so much about so many things. Lin Qinhe raised his eyebrows slightly and actually said, You can try. CH 47 Being interrupted by Lin Qinhe, Tao Xi felt that the irritability in his heart seemed to have disappeared. When Lin Qinhes phone vibrated, Tao Xi reached into Lin Qinhes coat pocket and took out the phone for Lin Qinhe Lin Qinhe glanced at the phone screen, it was Luo Zhengyins call, so he answered Qinhe, Im on the way to pick up Lele. Ill be there soon. You should be back from grandpas house. I want to take you and Lele to eat out. Is it convenient for you to come here now? Lin Qinhe didnt hesitate much, and said bluntly: Tao Xi and I are outside. I will send him back to school later. The private room was so quiet that even if the speaker was not turned on, Tao Xi could hear Luo Zhengyins voice. Luo Zhengyin seemed to hesitate for a while before saying: Is Tao Xi there? Then I will invite you to eat together. Its rare that you have a friend you like. I have always wanted to meet this kid. When Tao Xi heard the word like, he raised his eyes to Lin Qinhe, the corners of his mouth curled. Lin Qinhe frowned. He knew what Luo Zhengyins intention was. During this period of time Yang Duole was in a bad mood, making the family restless. He had run out of patience in coaxing Yang Duole and the two were much more distant than before. Luo Zhengyin had been trying to find an opportunity for the two to ease their relationship. Lin Qinhe knew that Tao Xi minded Yang Duole and was ready to find a reason to reject Luo Zhengyin when he heard Luo Zhengyin say with a pleading tone. Qinhe, can you help mom ask Tao Xi? Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xi, thinking that Tao Xi would shake his head and refuse, but he saw Tao Xi calmly say, You tell auntie that I can. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis eyes for two seconds, and after confirming that his expression was not reluctant, he agreed with Luo Zhengyin and asked her about the restaurant. After answering the phone, Lin Qinhe asked Tao Xi, You really dont mind? He couldnt know how much Tao Xi didnt want to see Yang Duole, but he had already noticed it from the first time they met at the beginning of the school year. Tao Xi put his hand in his pocket and said in a relaxed tone: I dont mind. But Yang Duole, how would he react when he saw him? Luo Zhengyin parked the car in the parking lot of the grand club and called Yang Duole. Perhaps because he had a good time at his classmates birthday party, Yang Duole seemed to be in a much better mood tonight. Soon Yang Duole got into the car and called out Mother Luo. Although he still didnt talk much, he would answer a few questions whenever Luo Zhengyin asked. Luo Zhengyin casually asked a few things about the party, and then drove the car to a nearby western restaurant she had ordered. Yang Duole liked the desserts there. On the way, she was hesitant to say that Lin Qinhe and Tao Xi were also coming over. Adults always thought that childrens contradictions could be resolved by talking to them. Luo Zhengyin originally wanted Lin Qinhe and Yang Duole to ease the relationship, but it happened that Tao Xi was there. She guessed that her two children had conflicts because of Tao Xi, and she thought that she could take this rare opportunity to let them sit down and have a heart-to-heart talk. At a table for four in a western restaurant, Yang Duole lowered his head and ate expensive desserts with a fork. Luo Zhengyin, who was sitting opposite, sent a WeChat message to Lin Qinhe to ask where he was and then asked Yang Duole: Lele, shall we go to sweep your mothers grave together this weekend? In the past, Luo Zhengyin would take Yang Duole to visit Fang Suis grave every once in a while. Yang Duole would carefully pick a handful of her mothers favorite white roses at the flower store, then give them to her mother at the grave and talk to her for a while. But now Luo Zhengyin saw that Yang Duole stopped the fork in his hand and pressed his lips tightly without speaking. Obviously he was unwilling to agree to visit Fang Suis grave. She was puzzled, but when she was about to ask, she saw Lin Qinhe walking in with a boy not far away. She naturally knew that boy was Tao Xi. Tao Xi pointed his finger at the vacant black grand piano in the middle of the restaurant and tilted his head to say something to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe glanced at the piano and gave Tao Xi a very light smile. Luo Zhengyin was stunned, a strange feeling bubbled up in her heart. She stood up from her seat and said with a smile to the two people who were walking towards her, Qinhe, Tao Xi. Hello, Auntie. Tao Xi greeted Luo Zhengyin politely, and then glanced at Yang Duole, who was sitting and eating with his back turned to him. There was a pang, a sound of metal falling to the ground. Luo Zhengyin looked down and found that the fork in Yang Duoles hand fell to the ground. The waiter on the side quickly walked over and replaced Yang Duole with new cutlery. Yang Duoles back stiffened and kept his head hanging down. He firmly grasped the new fork in his hand, shaking slightly. Luo Zhengyin, who didnt see Yang Duoles expression, said to him, Lele, I didnt tell you earlier, Qinhe and Tao Xi also came over. You are both classmates, so its good to sit together and chat. Lin Qinhe looked at Yang Duoles hand holding the fork and pulled out a chair for Tao Xi to sit next to Luo Zhengyin, while he himself sat opposite of Tao Xi. Luo Zhengyin also sat down, and finally noticed the abnormality of Yang Duole on the opposite side. Cold sweat appeared on his forehead and his lips turned white, clutching his fork and staring at the unfinished berry pudding in front of him. She worried that Yang Duole was not feeling well and hurriedly asked, Lele, whats wrong? Tao Xi took the menu from Lin Qinhe, looked at Yang Duole who was diagonally opposite, and looked down at the menu. Yang Duole glanced at Tao Xi who was looking at the menu, shook his head at Luo Zhengyin and said with a voice like gnats: Im fine. Then he continued to eat the dessert with his fork without looking up at anyone. Luo Zhengyin wondered if she had done something wrong without permission. Yang Duole seemed to be very resistant to Tao Xi, but he didnt ask to leave and only ate in silence. She suppressed the doubts in her heart, turned to Tao Xi and said in a kind tone, Tao Xi, you can order whatever you want, auntie is treating you today. Tao Xi replied obediently: Okay, thank you auntie. He lowered his head and continued to look at the menu, the prices on it were so expensive that he was speechless. After struggling for a while, he didnt know how to choose, so he pushed the menu to Lin Qinhe and poked the back of Lin Qinhes hand when Luo Zhengyin wasnt looking. Lin Qinhe took the menu with a clear understanding and ordered a few desserts and drinks from the waiter. The meal came up quickly. Luo Zhengyin saw Lin Qinhe cut a piece of the peach dessert tower, and naturally placed it on Tao Xis dinner plate. Tao Xi smiled at Lin Qinhe, seemingly used to Lin Qinhes actions. Luo Zhengyin was slightly surprised and glanced at his son again. The music in the western restaurant was soothing, but the atmosphere at this side of the table was a bit stagnant. Luo Zhengyin took the initiative several times to get the children to talk, but only Tao Xi responded to her seriously. Lin Qinhe occasionally answered a few words, and Yang Duole did not speak at all. What Luo Zhengyin could talk about as a parent was nothing more than the childrens learning and hobbies and when she heard Tao Xi say he liked to paint, she looked at the boy with a few surprises and asked again, You like to draw too? Didnt realize that the word too was a bit strange. Lin Qinhe sat next to Yang Duole and looked down at Yang Duoles left hand clutching the tablecloth under the table, the bones of that hand were white, as if he was extremely nervous about something. Tao Xi nodded and said, Yes, I now learn oil painting from Grandpa Qiao Henian. Luo Zhengyin was stunned when she heard the word Qiao Henian. She could not help recalling that many years ago, when Fang Sui was also a student of Qiao Henian at the age of sixteen or seventeen, after she finished her weekend piano lessons, she would ride her bicycle to the old house of the Qiao family to pick up Fang Sui who had finished her painting lessons. Fang Sui would occasionally pick up a Paulownia leaf from the ground and give it to her, sitting on the back seat of the bicycle and talking to her with a smile. Tao Xi felt that Luo Zhengyin was looking at himself in a strange way. He felt an unexplainable sadness and despair in her eyes, as if she was looking at another person through himself. He hesitantly asked: Do you also know Grandpa Qiao? Luo Zhengyin recovered. Perhaps it was because this child looks too much like Fang Sui so she always thought of Fang Sui every time she faced Tao Xi, and she also felt uneasy. She smiled and said, Yes, Uncle Qiao watched me grow up, you can definitely learn a lot by following Uncle Qiao, he is a very good painter and a very good teacher. Tao Xi nodded and said, Grandpa Qiao has indeed taught me a lot. Luo Zhengyin recalled another past event, Qinhe often went to play at Uncle Qiaos house when he was young, but he went less these years. She looked at Lin Qinhe and smiled, Qinhe, visit Uncle Qiao next time on holiday. His old man complained to me before, saying you never go to his house after you grow up. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe and gently touched the tip of Lin Qinhes shoe with his foot under the table. Lin Qinhe said without changing his face, Ill visit next Sunday. It was as if he had never been there before. Luo Zhengyin looked at Yang Duole, whom she had been paying close attention to, but Yang Duole still had his head down and ate without saying anything, so she sighed inwardly and had to continue talking to Tao Xi. Do you plan to continue learning painting in the future? Have you thought about which school to go to? Tao Xi smiled slightly and said, I plan to apply to art schools in the United States. He glanced at Yang Duole calmly and continued, So now Im preparing my portfolio and participating in some painting exhibitions and competitions. Luo Zhengyin was a little surprised. After thinking about it, she suggested, If you want to apply to foreign schools, you really need to prepare early. I know more about painting exhibitions, so I can introduce you to some. As for competitions, I dont know much about it, you can ask Uncle Qiao. She really wanted to help this child. In recent years, because she often held painting exhibitions for Fang Sui, she knew better. Tao Xi smiled at Luo Zhengyin and said sincerely, Thank you, Auntie. When Luo Zhengyin saw Tao Xis smile, she was in a trance for a moment. Something flashed in her mind and she asked abruptly, I heard Lele and Qinhe say that you are from Qingshui County, where is your hometown in Qingshui County? I have never been to Qingshui County, but I have seen some landscape paintings there. It is a very beautiful place. Tao Xi saw Yang Duole stop the cutlery from the corner of his eyes. Before he could answer, Yang Duole stood up with pursed lips, threw down the cutlery and walked towards the outside of the restaurant without saying anything. Luo Zhengyin hurriedly stood up and shouted Lele a few times, but Yang Duole did not stop, so she had to chase after him without even having the time to say anything to the other two. Tao Xi naturally knew why Yang Duole fled. He lowered his eyelashes to hide the ridicule in his eyes. There were only two people left on the dining table. Tao Xi found that Lin Qinhe had been looking at him and asked, Arent you going back with your mother? During the meal and conversation, he discovered that Luo Zhengyins attention and concern for Yang Duole seemed to be even stronger than for his own son Lin Qinhe, which made him somewhat incomprehensible. More than that, he felt it ironic that he tried so hard to please his elders, but Yang Duole could play his temper and just leave. Lin Qinhe put his plate of completely uneaten dessert in front of Tao Xi, as if he didnt care about Luo Zhengyin and Yang Duole leaving, and calmly said. When you finish eating, Ill send you back. Tao Xi accepted the dessert nonchalantly, lowered his head and continued eating, but still thinking about Lin Qinhes mother in his heart. He suddenly remembered that a long time ago, Bi Chengfei had said to him that Lin Qinhes mother treated Yang Duole like her own child, and now it seemed that this statement was not exaggerated. So if the truth came out, with more than ten years of affection like mother and son, Lin Qinhes mother would definitely defend Yang Duole, right? What would she think of him? He and Lin Qinhe were still in such a relationship. Tao Xi was absentmindedly eating dessert when he suddenly heard Lin Qinhe ask. Is Guan Fanyun looking for you tonight related to Yang Duole? Tao Xis heart jumped suddenly, the fork in his hand stopped, and he slowly swallowed the dessert in his mouth without answering. He found that Lin Qinhe was sometimes so sharp that he felt terrible. Lin Qinhe didnt seem to expect his answer. Looking at him quietly, he continued: If I hadnt come over then, you would have followed Guan Fanyun? This sentence had little tone and the question was like an affirmative sentence. Tao Xi was quiet for a moment and lowered his gaze, like a student being chided by his parents, put down his fork, put his hands on the table in a disciplined manner and said. President Guan told me she wanted to introduce a friend to me, it will help me apply to schools abroad. He still couldnt tell Lin Qinhe the conversation he heard, let alone his plan to take the opportunity to retaliate. Lin Qinhe frowned slightly, not believing this statement. He knew that Tao Xi would no longer accept the kindness of others easily, let alone Guan Fanyun, a completely stranger and complicated identity. He also always knew that Tao Xi had something to hide from him, perhaps the secret that Tao Xi was about to tell him. Regarding this secret, he had an extremely absurd guess, so absurd that he thought he was crazy. The restaurants pianist returned to the grand piano and sat down, playing a lazy jazz tune, with a number of dining guests laughing and applauding. The two people on this side of the table, however, suddenly fell silent. Tao Xi had never been looked at by Lin Qinhe with such a gaze, as if his gaze had weight. He was a little flustered. He didnt know what Lin Qinhe was thinking. He thought he was still thinking about Guan Fanyun, so after thinking about it, he asked directly: Whats wrong? Is there a problem with President Guan? Lin Qinhe looked away and put the crazy guess in his heart temporarily on hold. He has indeed heard about Guan Fanyun and others, but he was not one to talk about others behind their backs and only said. Nothing. In the future if she comes to you alone, its best to ignore it. Tao Xi sighed with relief, nodded and said, Okay, I know. He began to talk about Jin Jings birthday party in the evening, and vividly described how a few mic-crazy people grabbed the microphone to sing, Bi Chengfeis singing voice was a long story, and how big and delicious Jin Jings birthday cake was Lin Qinhe has been listening quietly, occasionally responding to Tao Xis words. After the pianist finished playing the jazz, he changed to a new piece and played only a short section. Tao Xis eyes lit up and said to Lin Qinhe: Listen, its Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence! He propped one hand on his cheek, and after listening carefully for a while, he shook his head and said, Not as good as you play. Lin Qinhe leaned back on the back of the chair and asked with some amusement, You can hear it? Tao Xi knew that Lin Qinhe was laughing at his own musical appreciation and hummed softly, If I say you play well, then you play well. Lin Qinhe smiled and began to listen to the piece he had played many times but he had no mind to listen to who played better. He looked out the floor-to-ceiling window. It was already mid-December, many stores on the street had posted Christmas decorations on their windows in advance, and a huge Christmas tree was set up at the entrance of the opposite shopping mall, flashing red and green neon lights. It was just one snowfall away from Christmas. CH 48 In the end, it was Lin Qinhe who settled the bill. After sending Tao Xi back to school, he returned to the villa and saw Luo Zhengyin sitting alone on the sofa in a disheveled manner, holding a string of red peace knots in her hand. After sending Yang Duole back, Luo Zhengyin wanted to have a good talk with Yang Duole, but not only did she fail to do so, Yang Duole even quarreled with her, and finally untied the peace knot he had been wearing and locked himself in his room again. Lin Qinhe poured a cup of warm water, went to sit next to Luo Zhengyin and handed the water to her. Luo Zhengyin said thank you, took the water glass, and only drank a sip before she said apologetically: Qinhe, you help me say sorry to Tao Xi, I wanted to invite you to sit together to eat and chat tonight, but Lin Qinhe said, Its okay, I was going to take him to eat something too. Luo Zhengyin thought of the slightly strange atmosphere between Lin Qinhe and Tao Xi tonight but she didnt say anything, just looking at the string of peace knots in her hand, with exhaustion between her eyebrows. She confided to her son: Lele really isnt quite right recently. His grandfather told him to go back to Fangs house and he didnt go. He took time off from home for a few days and didnt go to school and when he recently went to school, he kept locked in his room every day after he got home. I asked him but he didnt tell me what happened. After coming back tonight, he lost his temper. I was afraid if theres something wrong with his body. Lin Qinhe also tried to communicate with Yang Duole some time ago, but Yang Duole kept his mouth shut. After thinking about it, he said to Luo Zhengyin: You can ask him to see a psychiatrist. Luo Zhengyin couldnt figure out why Yang Duole would have psychological problems. Thinking of the fact that Yang Duole seemed to be more irritated in the western restaurant tonight, she hesitated and asked Lin Qinhe tentatively. Is there any conflict between Lele and Tao Xi at school? I feel that Lele doesnt like him very much. Lin Qinhe looked a little unhappy at her words and said in a deep voice: Tao Xi and him have nothing to do with each other. Luo Zhengyin heard the implication of Lin Qinhes defense of Tao Xi, sighed and said, Im just asking because last time I heard you guys quarrel, you seemed to have mentioned him, I didnt mean to blame Tao Xi. She originally thought that when she held a birthday party for Yang Duole this year, she would invite Tao Xi to come and play. After all, Lin Qinhe and Tao Xi seemed to have a good relationship and she also liked this child, but now she thought it was not quite appropriate for Tao Xi to come over. Did Auntie Fang make this peace knot? Luo Zhengyin was stunned and looked down at the already old peace knot, her tone had a bit of sadness. Yes, from what Uncle Fang said, it was made by ASui herself for Lele when she was pregnant with Lele in Qingshui County. It means peace and happiness, but it is a pity that she failed to put it on Lele by herself. When Luo Zhengyin finished, she saw Lin Qinhe frowning, so she asked, Whats wrong? Lin Qinhe shook his head and continued to ask, Do you know where Auntie Fang lived in Qingshui County at that time? Luo Zhengyin looked at Lin Qinhe in surprise and asked, Why are you asking this question too? She knew that Lin Qinhe never took the initiative to mention Fang Sui, and even was a bit evasive Lin Qinhe seemed to be thinking and asked, Did Lele also ask? Luo Zhengyin nodded and recalled, Last time after Lele came back from school, he suddenly asked me this question, but I didnt go to Qingshui County at that time and didnt know. I only knew that ASui was living in a farmhouse at that time. Uncle Fang refused to tell me where exactly it was. After she finished speaking, she looked at Lin Qinhe, but saw Lin Qinhe looking serious, and after a few seconds of silence, he asked her again: The oil painting of peach blossoms in the mountains hanging in the painting room, was it painted by Auntie Fang when she was in Qingshui County? Luo Zhengyin was stunned, and quickly realized which painting Lin Qinhe was referring to. It was her favorite. The peach blossoms on the banks of the clear stream in the mountain col were like brocade, and a farmhouse with black tiles and white walls was halfway up the mountain, with smoke curling. It was a kind of calm and serene paradise. Yes, she painted a lot of landscape paintings when she lived there. They were all brought back by Uncle Fang later. I also have a few here. After being asked so much about Fang Sui by Lin Qinhe, Luo Zhengyin naturally noticed that something was wrong, but he saw Lin Qinhes brow was furrowed, his expression became heavier, and there were a few moments of panic between his brows. Luo Zhengyin asked suspiciously: Why do you suddenly ask about ASui? Just remembered something. Lin Qinhe stood up from the sofa, looked down at Luo Zhengyin, and asked. Can I go to your painting studio to take a look? Luo Zhengyin also stood up and nodded: Of course you can. Thank you. Lin Qinhe said to her, turning around and walking towards the stairway. A wry smile appeared on Luo Zhengyins face. It was clearly Lin Qinhes home here, but Lin Qinhe was always so polite. Looking at Lin Qinhes back, she suddenly thought of something and said: Qinhe, what you said to me last time, I thought about it for a long time, but I still cant agree. Lin Qinhe paused in his steps and turned to look at her, not saying a word. Luo Zhengyin took a few steps closer, slightly tilted her head to look at her son, who had long been much taller than herself, and said in a persuasive and pleading tone. Qinhe, have you ever thought that if you do this, Lele will be very sad. He is in a bad mood now, we should spend more time with him. Lin Qinhe looked at her in silence. Luo Zhengyin thought for a moment and asked, Did your grandfather say something to you? Lin Qinhe said with a calm expression: Grandpa did say many times before that he wanted me to move to the old house, but I never agreed and told him that I wanted to continue living here. Luo Zhengyin frowned. Lin Qinhe was sent to her by Lin Zeshi from his brothers house only after he was five years old. The old man of the Lin family initially opposed leaving his grandson with her, but she reluctantly persuaded him on the grounds that two children of the same age would grow up together and have a companion. Lin Qinhe looked at his mother, held the corner of his mouth and smiled, his voice was calm: You may not know that the reason why I stay in this home is never Lele, but you. Luo Zhengyins gaze suddenly trembled, she opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but saw that Lin Qinhe had already turned to leave. Tao Xi returned to the empty dormitory on the weekend and sat on the easel to paint after showering. He followed Qiao Henians advice to participate in an art competition called CAC, which had high influence and international influence. If he could get an award, it would be very beneficial to his school application. The deadline for submission was very close, and Tao Xi had almost finished the painting, but he stared at the painting and thought about it for a while, then suddenly took it off the easel and replaced it with a new blank drawing paper. After painting the first draft for nearly half an hour, Tao Xi put down the brush, covered the easel with a white cloth before he went to wash his hands and then turned off the light. He climbed onto the bed and got under the quilt, staring at the ceiling in a daze. He knew he was on the edge. He had already made the decision to tell the truth after Lin Qinhes competition, but he couldnt help but feel timid about the unknown afterwards. Perhaps this was called being afraid of being close to home. There were seventeen years between him and his relatives. Even if there was blood tie, he couldnt believe that those relatives would accept him. Even if he was accepted, how could he stand in this completely strange family? Yang Duole would not be willing to return to his original family, and those who raised him for more than ten years would not easily abandon him. In the end, he and Yang Doule might end up having to play the role of brothers under one roof. This was the most likely ending, but could he fit into such a family? Tao Xi took a deep breath, turned on the phone screen in the dark and clicked on the WeChat box with Lin Qinhe. He wanted to send a message to Lin Qinhe, but found that the time had passed twelve. Tao Xi finally locked the phone screen, covered and wrapped himself tightly with the quilt and closed his eyes to sleep in the dark. He said to himself, if he couldnt fit in, then just dont fit in. Hadnt he been here for more than ten years? Even without relatives, he could still live well alone. Besides, he still had Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi convinced himself, and finally settled down to sleep, but dreamed all night. He dreamed that when he was ten years old, he was at his grandmothers house. Tao Le forgot to turn off the tap of the water pipe and flooded his grandmothers cellar filled with sweet potatoes. When Guo Ping knew it, she chased and beat him with a bamboo cane without asking anything. He was in so much pain that he cried out to his mother, not me, not me. He ran to his grandma and begged her to testify for him, but grandma only held Tao Le silent. He dreamed of that night in the hospital again. He quietly hid outside the door of the ward and saw his grandparents sitting in front of the hospital bed, holding Yang Duoles hand, heartily dropping tears and calling softly good grandson over and over again. He wanted to run into the ward, but couldnt get in, so he could only shout to them outside the door. Its me, look at me, look at me. But grandparents could not see him or hear him. Tao Xi woke up to find that the quilt had been kicked around by himself somehow. His throat was sore and he didnt seem to have much strength in his body. He struggled in bed for a while, but got up before the bell rang, washing and dressing quickly, and then went out to practice English. After a night of partying, many people in the class the next Monday were a bit depressed and a large number of people fell down after class. Tao Xi was also very sleepy and had some headaches, but held on to stay awake. After spending the whole morning and noon, Tao Xi felt his head hurt more. He lowered his head to organize the notes of the previous class in the notebook, and suddenly felt a hand on his forehead, and he felt a little cold to the touch. Tao Xi looked aside. Lin Qinhe retracted his hand and said to him with a frown, You have a fever. Tao Xi stretched out his hand to touch his forehead, feeling that it was not burning, and then joked to Lin Qinhe: Maybe your hand is too cold. Why dont I hold it for you? Lin Qinhe, however, still looked serious. He got up and walked to the podium, said something to Zhou Qiang who had just come in to prepare for class, and then walked over to Tao Xi, holding his wrist and pulling him up from his seat. ? Tao Xi opened his eyes and looked at Lin Qinhe. He didnt want to skip math class. Go to the infirmary. Lin Qinhes tone was not to be disobeyed. Tao Xi was dragged to the infirmary by Lin Qinhe. Recently, the cold wave had been violent. There were many sick people in the infirmary and the sound of sneezing and coughing was endless. Are you not covered with a quilt properly at night? The female school doctor asked with no surprise. She had treated Tao Xis wounds and she knew Lin Qinhe well. Tao Xi nodded listlessly while sitting on a stool with a thermometer in his hand. How old are you, still kicking the blanket. The school nurse kindly joked. Tao Xis face was a little embarrassed. He looked at Lin Qinhe, but heard Lin Qinhe ask him seriously, Didnt turn on the air conditioning in the dormitory? He shook his head and said, I dont like to turn on the air conditioner, its too dry. In fact, he thought that turning on the air conditioner by himself was too expensive. After a while, the school doctor looked at the thermometer and said to Lin Qinhe, who was standing aside, 37.8 degrees. Okay, the fever is not too high, Ill give him some medicine. Do you need to take time off to go back and rest? Lin Qinhe lifted his hand to touch Tao Xis forehead and asked the school doctor. No need, no need! Tao Xi hurriedly answered, he didnt want to be absent from class. The school doctor felt that the two boys had a good relationship, but Lin Qinhe was a little too nervous, she said with amusement: Take time off to go home? Thats not necessary, take the medicine.Take a good rest and keep warm, you should be fine soon. Tao Xi raised his jaw towards Lin Qinhe and agreed: Right, Im in good health, Ive never taken medicine when I had a cold before, Ill be fine soon. The children in his place were all raised rough and a little headache and fever were not taken seriously at home. At most they went to the old Chinese medicine doctor in the village to buy some herbs to drink. But he neglected to mention that when he was twelve years old, he had a fever and didnt get better even after three days. There was blood in his nose and he passed out in class and was taken to the county hospital by the teacher to get his life back. The school doctor reprimanded Tao Xi: This is not right. If you are sick, you still need to take medicine. Dont underestimate the flu and fever. After a long time, it may become a serious illness. Tao Xi was stabbed by the facts, gave a guilty en, and quietly looked at Lin Qinhe on the side, only to see Lin Qinhe staring at him with an unclear look. He lowered his head in surprise and continued to listen to Lin Qinhe and the school doctor, without interrupting anymore. Finally, Lin Qinhe took the medicine from the school doctor. Tao Xi finally breathed a sigh of relief and quickly stood up and said, Go back to class, ba. Lin Qinhe did not say anything. He raised his hand to wrap his scarf, only letting him reveal half of his face, and then led him outside, silent all the way. Tao Xi felt that there was something wrong with Lin Qinhe, as if he was not angry, but there was a somewhat heavy emotion. He didnt know what was wrong with Lin Qinhe. He entangled a few words and walked for a while, only to find that Lin Qinhe was not walking in the direction of the classroom, but led him to the downstairs of the dormitory. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe in a daze: What are you doing in the dormitory? You need a good sleep. Lin Qinhe said. Tao Xi didnt really want to, but he didnt dare to refute Lin Qinhe, so he took Lin Qinhe upstairs and thought for a while with his dizzy head whether he had cleaned up the dormitory in the morning. After opening the door of the dormitory, Tao Xi turned on the light and hurriedly moved the easel to the side. He was going to pour water for Lin Qinhe, but Lin Qinhe took his arm and led him to the chair, pressing his shoulder to let him sit down. Sit here and dont move. Tao Xi obediently sat still, only one pair of eyes followed Lin Qinhe, not turning his eyes. Lin Qinhe glanced at the dormitory, which was very clean. He recognized Tao Xis bed at a glance, because there was a pink bear on the head of the bed, the one they grabbed from the claw machine together. He suddenly thought, at the crab restaurant that night, why did he take Tao Xi to catch the doll? Lin Qinhe picked up the air conditioner remote control from the table, turned the air conditioner on and adjusted the temperature, then he picked up Tao Xis water cup and went to the water dispenser outside to get a cup of hot water. After adding some boiled water, he found that Tao Xi was lying on the table, his eyes closed and he had already fallen asleep. Lin Qinhe gently pinched Tao Xis cheek and said in a warm voice, Take the medicine before you sleep. Tao Xi struggled to open his eyes, lowered his eyelids, and hugged Lin Qinhes waist, resting his forehead against his body to continue squinting sleep. Lin Qinhe rubbed the back of Tao Xis head with care, and looked around the dormitory, thinking that the dormitory was too small and the bed was too small. Tao Xi leaned on Lin Qinhe and fell asleep again, but finally was woken up by Lin Qinhe. He took the glass of water from Lin Qinhes hand and drank it sip by sip, feeling that his dry throat was getting better. Lin Qinhe opened the medicine he had just bought, took out a few pills according to the instructions of the school doctor, and put them in Tao Xis palm. Tao Xis face was bitter. He didnt like taking medicine at all, but Lin Qinhe was staring at him so he drank the medicine obediently. Lin Qinhe stared at Tao Xi after taking the medicine, closed the balcony door, and said to Tao Xi, Go to bed and sleep. Tao Xi sat still, his white cheeks were stained with rosy red and his eyes were covered with a layer of mist. He raised his head and looked straight at Lin Qinhe, as if he was burning silly. Lin Qinhe thought for a while and raised his hand to rub Tao Xis hair, whispering, Im not leaving. Only then did Tao Xi slowly get up from the chair, take off his outer jacket and shoes, climb onto the bed and wrap himself into a cocoon with the quilt. But he did not immediately close his eyes and go to sleep. Instead he wriggled and moved to the edge of the bed, hooking his neck to look at Lin Qinhe, a pair of dark eyes peeking out from the quilt. Lin Qinhe was a little helpless, knowing what Tao Xi was thinking, he swept his eyes over Tao Xis desk and asked, Are there any books in the dormitory? Tao Xi said in a muffled voice: They are in the drawer. Lin Qinhe pulled open the drawer, took out a random book from it and lifted his hand to show it to Tao Xi, saying, Im reading here, you sleep at ease. Tao Xi let out an en, as if finally relieved. He lay down on the bed and closed his eyes, then fell asleep after a while. Lin Qinhe did not read the book, but lowered his head and looked at the business card in the drawer that he had accidentally brought out. He picked up the pale golden business card, which was obviously carefully preserved and still looked brand new, with only three words in the center: Yang Zhengming. Lin Qinhe put the business card back in the drawer, then put the jacket that Tao Xi took off and put it on the quilt that covered Tao Xi. He was tall and could see Tao Xi even by the side of the bed. Tao Xi may be used to sleeping on his side. A reddish face faced him, breathing a little heavy, eyes closed, only the eyelashes occasionally trembling. After Lin Qinhe watched for a while, he placed the little pink bear on the head of the bed next to Tao Xis head. He stretched out his hand and gently touched Tao Xis head, then touched the little bears head, letting it accompany Tao Xi to sleep on this small bed. CH 49 Tao Xi was very afraid of getting sick since he was a child. Because of her sisters illness, the family was already stretched out, so even if he had some discomfort, he would not tell Guo Ping. For a normal cold, he could get better in just a week. Fortunately, he did not have any serious illness. Guo Ping seemed to be frightened during the only time he was seriously ill that he was specially taken care of in hospital for several days. After that, he sometimes thought it wouldnt be that bad to get sick. Because when he was ill, Guo Ping would take care of him more and even cook him a pot of very fragrant chicken soup. This was what he had always yearned for since he was a child, especially in winter. When Tao Xi woke up, the first thing he saw was the little bear staring at him in a gloomy mood, and he was startled. The next thing he noticed was that the dorm room was dimly lit and no lights were on. He suddenly sat up from the bed and leaned on the edge of the bed to look for Lin Qinhe. But there was no one in the bedroom. He looked at the clothes spread on the quilt and knew that Lin Qinhe had probably just gone out temporarily, but his heart was still empty because this feeling of waking up alone when he slept until dusk was not so good, it was like being abandoned by the world. Tao Xi sat on the bed in a daze, and suddenly heard the sound of the door being opened. He turned sideways and saw Lin Qinhe come in with a bag. He slightly raised his head to look at him, and said with a frown: Put your clothes on. Tao Xis eyes were instantly lit up and he quickly put on his thick clothes, climbed out of bed and followed Lin Qinhe like a little tail. Lin Qinhe turned on the light. Putting the lunch box bag in his hand on the table, he raised his hand to touch Tao Xis forehead, who was closely following him. It was not hot anymore, but he was still not at ease. He handed Tao Xi the thermometer he bought from the infirmary and said, Take the temperature. Tao Xi took it and put it under his arm. After walking a few steps around the table full of plastic bags, he still couldnt help but lie down on the table and sniffed carefully close to the bag. He could already smell the fragrance! You said you want to raise a puppy in the future, remember? Lin Qinhe asked while putting a discarded English newspaper on the table and took out the lunch boxes inside the bag one by one and arranged them. Tao Xi was stunned: Yes. Lin Qinhe took out the last bowl of soup and said casually: I dont think we need to raise it, isnt it here? Well, the first thing he had to do was to say that he was like a puppy. Tao Xi pretended not to hear as he took the thermometer out and gave it to Lin Qinhe, asking, Have you eaten? Lin Qinhe let out a um, took the thermometer and looked at the temperature for a while, his eyebrows stretched out, The fever has gone. I said I am in good health. Lets eat. Tao Xi didnt sit down immediately. Instead, he moved a chair and placed it next to his own chair, and then looked at Lin Qinhe eagerly. Lin Qinhe already knew that the sick Tao Xi was a little clingy. He sat down on that chair and Tao Xi followed him. Tao Xi looked down at the lunch box in front of him. The food Lin Qinhe bought should have been ordered from the restaurant outside. There was also a bowl of yellow and bright chicken soup with a strong fragrance. Seeing Tao Xi staring at the bowl of chicken soup in a daze, Lin Qinhe asked in a low voice, Dont like it? Tao Xi shook his head with eyelashes down. He took a sip of soup with a spoon and said, I like soup the most. In the evening Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe went to night study, and made up for the afternoon class quickly. His illness came and went quickly, but Lin Qinhe still watched him drink his medicine after school before he left. After Tao Xi returned to his dorm room, he continued to draw the sketches for the competition. Because he had scrapped the first draft and the deadline for submission was very tight, his time was suddenly tight. Pan Yan knew that Tao Xi was going to participate in the CAC competition. He stood by the easel and watched it for a while. When he saw Xu Ziqi coming over to look at it, he sarcastically said, Can you understand it? Youre in the way. Xu Ziqi retracted his gaze and walked back to his seat laughing: Who can understand such a strange and weird painting. Pan Yan was excited: This is abstract, and there is really no way to communicate with people like you who have no artistic cells. The gunpowder ignited, and the two began to argue with each other again. Tao Xi glanced at Xu Ziqi. After packing up the painting tools and putting the easel in the corner of the bedroom, he carefully covered the easel with a piece of white cloth. After lights out, Pan Yan played with his phone on the bed, smashing his mouth and sighing, The weather forecast says that most parts of the country will cool down next week. It may snow in our place, thanks to the people who invented the air conditioner. Otherwise, the master will freeze to death. Xu Ziqi sneered: Are you putting on so much fat for display? The two quarreled again, and only when the dormitory guard knocked hard on the door a few times did they call it quit. Tao Xi lay on the bed without saying anything. He fished out his phone from under the pillow, flipped through the weather forecast for a while, opened and downloaded the shopping software that he had never used, fumbled with a bunch of things, and after comparing and reading reviews again and again, he ordered a heater, two electric blankets, two thick quilts, two down coats, two scarves, two pairs of gloves, several sweaters, several pairs of plush socks It was almost one oclock when he finished buying and there wasnt much money left. He checked out all the orders and went to place another order for a few hair clips and a small red round hat. The weather forecast was right. With another cold wave hitting half of China, temperatures plummeted to the edge of 0 degrees for the next week, but the low temperatures and cold winds didnt quench the teenage s longing for Christmas. This year, Christmas fell on a Sunday. Girls had already planned to go shopping and dating on Sunday. The boys were not so interested in Christmas, but they were looking forward to buying foreign toys and games that would definitely be on sale on Christmas Day. Some people from Class 1 of the second year were going to the same place on Sunday afternoon, and during the lunch break on Saturday, a few of those invited got together in the classroom to discuss what gifts to buy. I heard that Auntie Luo has prepared a Christmas gift for each of us again this year. Last years gift was so expensive that we were embarrassed, and with so many people invited this year, I guess it will cost even more. A girl said. I still remember the birthday cake last year. It was a half-meter-high fondant doll based on Yakult. It was very realistic and cute. It cost a lot of money at a glance. A girl took a look at the back row, once again to make sure Lin Qinhe was not there, said: But Lin Qinhes family is so rich, its nothing for them, ba. Too envious, I have a birthday every year, and its already good that my mother can cook a good meal. A boy sounded envious. After all, he was raised there from childhood. It was no different from the biological children. The girl whispered. How do I feel that this is more intimate than her own son? As soon as Bi Chengfei entered the classroom, he saw someone gossiping and couldnt resist coming over, sharing the old information he knew again before returning to his seat contentedly and asking Tao Xi, who had been writing his paper with his head down: Xi ge, do you want to come with me tomorrow afternoon? He thought for sure that Tao Xi was also invited. After all, Lin Qinhe and Tao Xi had such a good relationship. Tao Xi stopped writing, turned the pen in his hand around, and said with a little tone: Im going to learn to paint tomorrow afternoon. Even if he didnt go to painting lessons, he couldnt possibly go, to smash the scene? He imagined the scene and sneered. Bi Chengfei said with great regret: Xueshens house is especially artistic, and this years party must be fun. It would be a pity if you dont go. Tao Xi did not speak, lowered his head and continued to do the questions. Lin Qinhes home? He suddenly remembered a dream that he had a long time ago. In the dream, Lin Qinhe wanted to take him home, but the car ended up driving to Taoxi Bay. He invited Lin Qinhe to his house, but Lin Qinhe turned around and left, and he chased after him for a long time but still couldnt catch up. Now he caught up with Lin Qinhe, but did not want to go to Lin Qinhes home, because in that home there was a person he did not want to see. Tao Xi did some questions for a while. After miscalculating a few formulas one after another, he suddenly realized a problem. Does Lin Qinhe know that his birthday falls on Christmas? He just whispered in that concert hall a long time ago, but he didnt know if Lin Qinhe heard it at that time, and even if he did, did he remember? Tao Xi was very worried. He decided to talk to him when Lin Qinhe came back, and then asked Lin Qinhe to go out tomorrow night. As a result, he waited until the end of the afternoon class before Lin Qinhe returned from the competition class. Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe to the cafeteria for dinner. On the way, he spoke to Lin Qinhe naturally: According to the weather forecast, it might snow on Christmas Day. Lin Qinhe said hmmm, looking calm and not thinking about anything. Tao Xi suddenly got stuck. He abruptly changed the subject to something else. When passing by the milk tea store next to the cafeteria, he saw a young female shopkeeper was doing activities at the entrance, giving free wish cards to students who passed by. After writing it, the card could be hung on the Christmas tree in the store. The card recipients were basically girls, but when the staff saw Tao Xi curiously looking at the card in her hand, and seeing how good-looking he was, she smiled and slipped a wish card into Tao Xis hand. Tao Xi said thank you to the staff. He looked at the card in his hand, and before he could see it clearly, the card was taken away by a hand. Tao Xi went to grab the card in Lin Qinhes hand and said, This is for me. But Lin Qinhe put the card directly into his pocket, then took out his phone that was vibrating. He looked down at the screen before taking a few steps away to a less crowded place and picked up the phone. Tao Xi had to stop and wait for Lin Qinhe to answer the phone, and saw Lin Qinhe frown. After a while said in a deep voice: Ill come over now. Whats the matter? Tao Xi asked. He felt that Lin Qinhe had a serious look for a moment when he answered the phone just now. Recently, Lin Qinhe seemed to be very busy. He often went out to answer the phone and sometimes took half-day off. Tao Xi asked several times, but Lin Qinhe said it was a family matter, so he couldnt ask anything more. Lin Qinhe looked calm and said, Nothing, I have to deal with something. Tao Xi was a little bit disappointed. He wanted to talk to Lin Qinhe in detail about the plan for tomorrow night while eating, but it seemed that he could only talk about it on WeChat. He lowered his gaze and pursed his lower lips. Stretching out his hand and spreading his palm, he said, Then give me back the card, Im going to make a wish. Lin Qinhe did not take out the card, he gently held Tao Xis hand and quickly let go, whispering. Isnt it good for me to make a birthday wish with you tonight? Tao Xi suddenly raised his eyes to look at Lin Qinhe and saw a smile in his eyes. You, you know? He opened his eyes round and suddenly raised his voice again, Tonight? But isnt my birthday tomorrow? He has already planned to go out to have a meal with Lin Qinhe and celebrate his birthday tomorrow afternoon after he finishes painting lesson, just to avoid the birthday party Lin Qinhes mother gave Yang Duole, so that Lin Qinhe didnt have to be in a difficult situation. Lin Qinhes voice was a little helpless: Birthdays are only meaningful after zero oclock. The last minute of sixteen and the first minute of seventeen are very important. Tao Xi nodded in a daze. It seemed that on New Year Eve, it was only when it passed zero that it was a new beginning of the year. Then the birthday should be past zero too, so it would mean a brand new one year old. He smiled again, his eyes bright as the evening star: Yes, after 12 oclock tonight, Ill be as old as you! He was going to be seventeen years old just like Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe said more seriously: No, I am still a few months older than you. Tao Xi knew that Lin Qinhes birthday was in May and thought it was a bit childish for Lin Qinhe to calculate such things, but he still agreed and said. Fine, fine, youre older than me, youre older than me. After he finished, he saw that Lin Qinhe raised his eyebrows slightly and gave an en. Ill come pick you up after school. Lin Qinhe said. Tao Xi nodded vigorously. He watched Lin Qinhe leave and happily walked into the cafeteria alone, took out his card and swiped a few expensive meat dishes and sat down to eat contentedly. He didnt envy Yang Duoles lively birthday party at all. But he couldnt help but think, in the future after he told the truth, would he have such a birthday party too? He didnt need so many friends, nor did he need so many expensive gifts, he just wanted a cake, a small one, with Lin Qinhe, his sister, his father and grandparents, and perhaps his adoptive parents, to say happy birthday to him. That was great. T/N: hello everyone! Im definitely not dropping this one, I was just so busy catching up with a project deadline. I usually scheduled the chapters on weekend but I really didnt have time for that for the past weekends as, well, working overtime, even working on weekend because of the project! but its finally over yesterday and the update will be resumed as usual :)) happy reading! CH 50 In a private room of a coffee shop, Su Yun took out the tablet from the document bag and said to the teenager sitting opposite: Not many people knew about it back then. After all, more than ten years have passed. It took Song Xin some time to find an insider, who is an old person in the village and once worked as a midwife. Song Xin was a very capable private investigator. Since Lin Qinhe asked her some time ago, she hired Song Xin and asked Song Xin to go to Taoxi Bay in Qingshui County. The old woman was very alert at first. It took Song Xin some time to get the old woman to tell the truth, all recorded in this video. Su Yun tapped the video on the tablet and handed it to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe looked at the video in silence, but did not pick it up quickly. He never found himself so cowardly before, so cowardly that he didnt seem to have the courage to confirm the suspicions that made him painful every time he thought about it. Even if it was already obvious. He finally took a deep breath, put on the headphones and opened the video on the tablet. The video was recorded by Song Xin in Taoxi Bay. A gray-haired old woman sat in a hall and spoke with a strong dialect accent to tell the old story that happened in a farmers house in Taoxi Bay on a winter night seventeen years ago. The painting lady had lived in our village for more than half a year. She had been living with Tao familys daughter-in-law. The two had a very good relationship. Coincidentally, both of them were pregnant with children and gave birth on the same day. The Tao family mother-in-law asked me and the village Granny Liu to help deliver the baby. Taos daughter-in-law gave birth to a boy less than a month old. Granny Liu said at the time that the child might not be easy to raise. I remember clearly that there was a large red spot on the babys right wrist. Taos daughter-in-law and mother-in-law certainly would not be wrong. Oh, its a pity that the painting lady had a lot of bleeding shortly after giving birth. We sent her to the health clinic in the town but she lost her breath before she arrived. I also later heard that the girl and the child were picked up by the family. But then I found that there was no red spot on the right hand of the child raised by the Tao family. I felt wrong at that time. I was afraid that I remembered wrong. I asked Granny Liu once. She said that she also remembered that the child of the Tao family had a birthmark on his hand. We just know that the Tao family quietly changed the two children. Before Granny Liu left a few years ago, she told me about this several times, saying that she was not at ease in her heart, Im also not at ease. Its a sin. The baby who should have grown up in the city grew up in our mountain. How sad it is for his mother to watch it from the sky. Lin Qinhe turned off the video and closed his dry and red eyes. His fingers were trembling and clenched tightly, and his nails were severely carved into his palms, so hard that the joints ache. He had long been psychologically prepared, imagining countless possibilities, and speculated on human nature with the greatest malice. But at the moment when he learned the absurd truth, he still felt furious. The intense hatred and anger were like a prairie fire, almost burning his internal organs. He was unforgivable to that family, unforgivable to their botched selfishness. He could not forgive the two old women who witnessed everything. Since their conscience was troubled, why did they choose to be hypocritically silent? He could not forgive even the people around him. Why did the two old men of the Fang family, Yang Zhengming, his mother Luo Zhengyin, all those people who seemed to be obsessed with Fang Sui for so many years, why did they never return to the place where Fang Sui last lived to see the child who had been left behind? But what followed the prevailing anger was endless pain and remorse, memories swept and flooded him like an overwhelming snowfall, each snowflake was like a sharp, pointed knife, twisting and grinding on his heart. Classmate Lin, can I borrow your notebook and copy it? Cannot. I, I just want to find a chance to talk to you, I want to bebe friends with you. Dont use this boring way, let alone use Yang Duole. This is a gift from Yang Duoles father. He didnt come today. You can bring it back to him. If I tell you, I want to cry now, but there is nowhere to cry, are you satisfied? My birthday is also on Christmas. If one day I get sick too, and it hurts very much, will you come to see me? Remember the eighteen-year-old letter your mother gave you? I think she hopes that when you open the letter, you have grown into a strong and optimistic adult. Lin Qinhe, I will also strive to become a strong and optimistic adult. If I grew up with you, would you still like me? Those details that had been noticed and ignored, those lurking behind the smile, the painful resentment he had tried to suppress Obviously there were traces to follow, and the foreshadowing had already been laid, but he didnt know. He didnt know. He couldnt forgive himself either. Qinhe? Su Yun called softly, her eyes looked worried. She almost had the illusion that the teenager in front of her was going to shed tears. Lin Qinhe wanted to say something, but found that his throat was stagnant, like being blocked by hot coals, as if every breath he took in would tug at his aching, numb heart. He forced himself to calm down, and it took a lot of strength before he asked in a deep, dull voice. Did she not say how he grew up? Su Yun looked at the teenager whom she watched growing up. How could she not understand his feelings for the child? She sighed lightly: How can you grow up in a place like that? Fate was inherently unfair. Some people were born with a golden spoon, and while others were born like dirt. But a shining star was buried in the mud at the bottom of the well by an absurd fate. Perhaps after exhausting his energy, he could only be silent and buried in the dust all his life. Lin Qinhe did not know, but he still did not dare to think about how well Tao Xi had been in that home these years. Those adults who knew he was not their own child, did they treat him well out of guilt? When he was sick, did anyone take care of him? When it rained, would there be someone to pick him up from school? He loved sweets so much, would someone buy him candy? Every Christmas in the past year, would anyone buy a birthday cake for his Tao Xi? People could be parents for the second, third or even more times, but they could only ever be children once. Some things that had been missed in this life would never come back. Outside the door came a faint cheerful Christmas songs. It was the same familiar tune every year, but people never seemed to get tired of hearing it, listening to it year after year. Lin Qinhe closed his eyes lightly. He suddenly stood up from his seat and turned to leave, but was called by Su Yun, who took out an old wallet from her bag and spoke quickly about another matter: Tao Jian resigned a few days ago. I specifically went to that property company to inquire about it. I heard from his colleague that Tao Jian often went out some time ago, saying that he was gambling and had lost a lot of money, but he had never asked a colleague to borrow money. Tao Jians job was arranged with her help. Lin Qinhe was investigating this matter recently, so she also paid attention to Tao Jians side. His colleague gave me a wallet he dropped in the staff dormitory, I had thought Tao Jian might come back to look for it, but he didnt come even once and his colleagues dont know where hes gone. Lin Qinhe was almost certain who had given Tao Jian the money. He took the wallet from Su Yun in silence. The wallet had obviously been used for many years, the rough and poor leather had been worn out a lot. There was not much money inside, but he saw at a glance that there was a group photo in the transparent compartment of the wallet. The photo might have been taken in a photo studio in a village and town. The background was a hanging Tiananmen curtain. In the center of the curtain sat a couple in their thirties, and next to the womans right stood a girl of seven or eight year old. Lin Qinhe quickly recognized that the girl was Tao Xis painted sister, and the couple spoke for themselves. In order to be able to fit into the interlayer, the photo seemed to be randomly folded up around the edges. His fingers paused, pulled the photo out and unfolded the part that was folded up. In the complete photo, there was a boy about ten years old standing next to Tao Jian. The boy was standing straight, slightly raising his chin at the camera, wearing an old yellow school uniform with a red scarf neatly wrapped around his neck, and holding out his right hand in a salute gesture. The corners of his mouth grin wide, a pair of curved eyes were as bright as stars, and the smile was brighter than the sun. As if he was the happiest child in the world. Lin Qinhe looked at the boy who was folded up in the family portrait, his adams apple rolled violently. He thanked Su Yun solemnly in a dumb voice, turned and walked out. The first snow fell on Christmas Eve, and snowflakes drifted to the ground quietly amidst the Christmas songs all over the street. The colorful umbrellas on the streets undulated high and low, and there were radiant neon everywhere. Su Yun anxiously chased him to the cafe door, handed his umbrella to Lin Qinhe, and said softly in a comforting voice. Everything is still lucky. Fortunately you walked to him, didnt you? Lin Qinhes shoulders were covered with crystal clear snowflakes, he shook his head: It was him who walked to me. He walked briskly into the wind and snow with his umbrella. T/N: This chapter is so short I double check lest I only translated half of it. The usual word counts for a chapter is 4000 words and this chapter is only half of it (its the 2nd shortest chapter) lol CH 51 Snowing! The corridors of the teaching building of Wenhua No. 1 High School were crowded with students who came out to watch the snow, accompanied by a joyful exclamation. Tao Xi was also squeezed in, but he was not looking at the snow. He shuddered, his eyes unconsciously passing through the heavy snow, and then toward the asphalt road leading to the school gate. Under the dimly yellow street lights, only snow flickering like goose feathers swirling and falling onto the quiet and uninhabited road could be seen. The last night-studys bell rang and the corridor was soon empty. Tao Xi waited for the bell to ring before lifting his feet towards the classroom, he couldnt help but turn his head and glance at the road when he took a step out. This look made him stop in his tracks instantly. Tao Xi quickly turned around and approached, his body pressed against the cold corridor railing, and he leaned outward to look at the asphalt road with his good eyesight. There was a familiar figure on the road, holding an umbrella in the direction of the teaching building. The distance was so far away and the snow was so heavy, but he could be sure who that person was. At that moment, Tao Xi had hardly any thoughts and quickly turned around and ran towards the stairs. Because the class was already in session, the stairwell was silent. He rushed downstairs alone, almost falling on the road because of the slippery ground. He ran into the bitter cold wind and heavy snow outside the teaching building, and snowflakes kept falling on his face and into his neck, turning into cold water trails, but he didnt even notice. On the silent road, Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe stopped not far away in his swaying vision, standing quietly in the heavy snow of the night under the umbrella, seeming to be looking at him. He ran faster and ran to Lin Qinhe in one breath without stopping. The man stood firmly, his eyes shining, gasping for breath and asked. You are done with the matter Before the words were finished, he was suddenly hugged into the arms of Lin Qinhe. The snow and darkness surrounded them tightly, Lin Qinhe lowered his head and buried it on his shoulder that had been slightly soaked with snowflakes. The arms holding him were tightening, nestling his entire body between his firm chest and arms, as if afraid he would disappear. Tao Xi couldnt see Lin Qinhes expression, but he seemed to feel the indescribable vulnerability and sadness in this person. He raised his hand to hug Lin Qinhe back and asked worriedly. What happened? Lin Qinhe, however, remained silent, buried deeply next to his neck, only the sound of somewhat heavy breathing could be heard. He had to stay quietly in Lin Qinhes arms, at a loss for words, gently patting Lin Qinhes back. He said softly, Its too cold outside, why dont we go back to the classroom first for the night study? Lin Qinhe finally spoke, but his voice was dumb: Go back. Tao Xi was stunned and subconsciously asked: Where to go back? Lin Qinhe didnt answer him. Instead, he slowly let go of him, but squeezed his hand firmly, tilted his head and kissed his cheek lightly, slightly cold and gentle, with a touch of solemnity. Until he got into the taxi, Tao Xi was still thinking about the heavy and hot emotion when Lin Qinhe was holding him just now. He looked at Lin Qinhe on the side. The light in the car was dim, but the car window was flowing with brilliant neon, giving Lin Qinhes profile a soft glow. Lin Qinhe noticed his line of sight and turned his head to look at him, holding his hand tighter. Lin Qinhe held his hand firmly all the way, tightly fitting, so hard that the palm of his hand was a little sweaty. After getting off of the car, the snow fell less. Many people on the street no longer had umbrellas. Lin Qinhe still held his hand and led him through the scattered snowflakes and the bustling crowd on the street. It was not unusual for two seventeen or eighteen boys to hold hands,but the two of them were tall and eye-catching. Many people look at them. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe nervously, but Lin Qinhe did not seem to care, just led him forward. He was held by Lin Qinhe and walked into a shopping mall, where the everlasting Christmas song All I Want For Christmas is You was playing and there were advertisements for Christmas sales in stores all over the place. Tao Xi thought Lin Qinhe was going to take him to buy something, but Lin Qinhe led him into a small store at the very edge of the mall. When he looked up, it was a photo studio, decorated in the retro style of the 1980s. Surprised, he asked Lin Qinhe, Are you going to take pictures here? In his impression, Lin Qinhe seemed to dislike taking pictures. Every time they took a group photo for a class event before, Lin Qinhe looked a little impatient. Before Lin Qinhe could answer, the photo studio owner, who looked to be in his twenties, came over and smiled, Yo, long time no see. How come you remembered to come to my place. Seeing that they knew each other, Tao Xi panicked and tried to pull his hand out, but Lin Qinhe didnt let go, instead he firmly grabbed his hand and gently squeezed it soothingly. Lin Qinhe said to the boss in a familiar tone, Id like you to take a picture with him for me. Tao Xi stared at Lin Qinhe blankly, his hand honestly did not move. The boss ruffled the long hair that fell in front of his forehead back and glanced at Tao Xi, his eyes fell on the two people holding hands, the smile on his face deepened a bit, and he said jokingly. My store is mainly for wedding photos and family portraits, are you sure youre looking for the right one? Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xi beside him, smiled slightly and said to the boss, Sure. The boss gave a tsk and wanted to continue joking, but Lin Qinhe gave him a not-so-kind look, so he had to give an OK gesture, Then Ill go get ready. Then he walked into the workshop inside. Tao Xis cheeks had been hot since he heard the group photo, he whispered to Lin Qinhe: Its the same to take pictures with your phone. Why come to the photo studio to take pictures? Lin Qinhe was silent for a while and whispered, I want to take a more formal picture with you. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe, his heart seemed to be filled with warm spring water. He smiled and said, Okay, ba. I havent been in a photo studio for a long time either. I took one in elementary school He paused before continuing: A family portrait with a background of Tiananmen Square. The Chinese teacher asked us to write an essay for the photo. The essay I wrote for that photo was titled I Love My Home. Lin Qinhe held Tao Xis hand tightly. He turned his head to look at Tao Xi and said, After we take the photo, you can also write an essay for it. Tao Xi joked: Then Teacher Lin can give me a question, ba. At this time the owner of the photo studio came out and said, Come in, you can take a picture. He and Lin Qinhe walked into the studio together. The setting in the studio was the same as the shops style, all in retro style. Like everyone who came to take pictures, they changed into white shirts without exception, and then sat side by side on the stools. After the boss took a few photos with the camera, the more he looked at the photos, the more satisfied he was. He said to the two men: The two of you look at each other. Tao Xi turned his head when he heard the words and Lin Qinhe also turned his head to look at him. He and Lin Qinhe looked at each other. Perhaps because they looked at each other for too long, or perhaps Lin Qinhe looked at him too softly, he didnt know why his eyes were hot, and Lin Qinhes face became blurred in his vision. He suddenly remembered there was a family photo that he once cherished in his notebook, and then lost it somewhere. He searched for a long time but couldnt find it. Later, there was no point in finding it. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis eyes, suddenly leaned in close and gently kissed the corner of his eyes. This scene was frozen in the lens. After the photos were taken, the boss quickly developed several small-sized photos, and the larger ones were to be sent to Lin Qinhe in a few days. Lin Qinhe carefully put the photo in the envelope and gave the boss an address that was the residential area. Tao Xi thought that the address might be Lin Qinhes home. They got into a taxi again, and Tao Xi heard Lin Qinhe reported an address to the driver. It was actually the address Lin Qinhe gave to the owner of the photo studio just now. He suddenly became nervous and his head buzzed. Was it possible that Lin Qinhe was going to take him back to his home? The journey didnt take long, the car only drove for more than 20 minutes and stopped. Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe out of the car and found that the place was the entrance to a very high-end residential area, looking like the place where Lin Qinhes home should be. Tao Xi looked at the tall building, curled his fingers unconsciously, and the next second his hand was held by Lin Qinhe again, his palm trembled, and his head tilted to look at Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe seemed to sense his doubts and said to him, There is no one else in my house. Tao Xi breathed a sigh of relief and asked in surprise: Are you living alone now? He knew that Lin Qinhe had always lived with his mother, as well as Yang Duole who lived there from time to time. Lin Qinhe however, didnt answer his question. He took his hand into the gate of the community, walked through the garden and walked into the elevator of a building. The elevator was spacious and there were no other people. Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe press the button on the 32nd floor and watched the numbers on the electronic screen increase at a constant speed. His heart kept beating along with the numbers. When the elevator door opened, Tao Xi took a deep breath and followed Lin Qinhe to a door, standing by the side cautiously watching Lin Qinhe open the door. Come in. Lin Qinhe turned on the light and said as he turned to him. He followed and walked in, but his footsteps stopped momentarily. What came into view was a bright and spacious living room. The decoration was very new, in line with the cold color of Lin Qinhe. The whole floor-to-ceiling window was not closed with curtains, and outside of the windows, the night view of the city was gorgeous like a sea of ??stars. But what attracted his attention was not the scenery outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, but the colorful balloons and dazzling fairy lights in the living room that were out of place with the decoration, surrounding a huge multi-layer fondant cake. There was also a white wool carpet next to the floor-to-ceiling windows and a Christmas tree full of candies in the corner. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xi and said with an unnatural look on his face, Sorry, this birthday party is just the two of us, its not very lively. After he asked Qiao Yitang about these arrangements, Qiao Yitang rushed over to help him. He was not satisfied and thought it was too fancy but Qiao Yitang said that the birthday party had to have an atmosphere like this. Tao Xi looked at the cake in a daze, and after a while he shook his head, saying: Two people would be very lively. After all, he used to be alone before this and even had the wrong birthday. He followed Lin Qinhe to change slippers, took off his coat and hung it on the hanger. He walked to the center of the living room to look at the birthday cake, only to find that there was a moon made of fondant on the top of the cake. The moon was the same as the comic he drew for Lin Qinhe, but next to the moon was not the meteorite he drew, but a deep blue star, entwined by a silver-white band of light, as if it was shining in its own orbit in the Milky Way. Tao Xi looked up at the star motionlessly. Lin Qinhe saw Tao Xi looking at the cake in a daze. Thinking that he wanted to eat cake, he said: The cake we will eat is not so big, but it will taste better. He had always felt that fondant cakes looked good and had a greater decorative effect but not tasty, so in addition to this custom-made cake, he bought another cake with better taste. Tao Xi let out some nasal en and turned to face Lin Qinhe. Hugging Lin Qinhes waist, he put his forehead on Lin Qinhes shoulder and rubbed it back and forth gently. Lin Qinhe raised his hand and rubbed Tao Xis hair, only to find that his hair was a little wet, probably because it had been drenched in snow. He was worried about Tao Xi catching a cold and said to him, Go take a shower, and well eat cake together afterwards. Tao Xi still buried his forehead next to Lin Qinhes neck, his face was a little hot, and he said sullenly, I didnt bring any clothes with me. He didnt bring anything. He had planned to go back to school, climbing over the wall after his birthday in the middle of the night. Lin Qinhe had a smile in his voice, and he can feel a slight vibration when he speaks. He said: You only brought a person. Tao Xi felt his face become hotter, and only nodded. Lin Qinhe did have everything here, towels, toothbrushes, pajamas even underwear, all new and washed, and he could just wear them. Tao Xi held a set of light beige cotton pajamas in his hand. Watching Lin Qinhe put water in the bathtub for him, he asked suddenly: You live alone in such a big house, are you not afraid? He was most afraid of living alone. When he was a child, Guo Ping occasionally took Tao Le back to her familys home for a few days, leaving him alone at home. He had to check the door several times at night, turn on the old radio to listen to the radio station, and wrap himself in a quilt before daring to sleep. Lin Qinhe put the water away, stood up, wiped his hands with a towel, and said in a loose tone: Im a little scared. Tao Xis eyes widened in surprise. Lin Qinhe always gave him the feeling of being calm and indifferent and reassuring, as if nothing would make this person nervous and upset. He couldnt hold back his laughter and he exclaimed with some exaggeration: Lin Qinhe is actually afraid to live alone too. Lin Qinhe leaned against the edge of the sink behind and looked at him, and said to him with a deep and soft voice: I wont live alone anymore. Tao Xis heart jumped suddenly, and he looked at Lin Qinhe blankly, his mind blank. He opened his mouth, but he didnt say a word. Lin Qinhe stood up straight, took a step closer to him, raised his hand to rub his earlobe, and said softly: Take a shower first, remember to blow dry your hair. T/N: me: the update will be resumed as usual also me: only update once a week sorry everyone, real life happens so the update schedule is changed. Ill update this on saturday, sunday, and monday every week, however, depends on my irl, if im not busy, the update might be more frequent. CH 52 Tao Xi finished his shower in the bathroom, put on his pajamas, and found that the pajamas also fit him. He looked at his pajamas for a while before absentmindedly blowing his hair with a hair dryer, then wiped the condensation on the mirror with his hand and got close to it to look at his face. It should be because he just took a bath; his face was steamed with a layer of blush and his lips were also very rosy. After looking at it for a while with his head left empty, he looked aside and found that there were two mouthwash cups in the cabinet, one black and one white, with a toothbrush in each, one black and one white. The heartbeat, which had easily smoothed out in the shower, suddenly accelerated again. Tao Xi lingered in the bathroom for a while before he opened the door and walked out. When he came in, he followed Lin Qinhe, and only hurriedly glanced at the big bedroom outside. At this moment, he was standing alone in the bedroom and looked around carefully. The bedroom was decorated in the same cold style as Lin Qinhe, without much decoration. There was a whole side of floor-to-ceiling windows with half-closed curtains. In the middle of the bedroom was a large bed with gray-blue sheets, looking very soft. He stared at the bed and found that there were two pillows at the head of the bed. Tao Xi wiped his hot face with his hand, and suddenly heard footsteps. He turned around to look over and saw Lin Qinhe came over, glancing at his pajamas, and said: Its almost twelve oclock. Tao Xi suddenly widened his eyes nervously, losing all of his thoughts. He didnt want to miss the zero oclock on his birthday. You took too long in the bath. I was going to show you the other rooms. Lin Qinhe said casually, raising his hand to tidy up Tao Xis rolled up collar, and sliding his fingers across the white and distinct collarbone. Tao Xi felt that his collarbone was a little itchy and his face became hot. He said quickly: Then lets go eat cake now. Lin Qinhe seemed to laugh, holding his wrist, and leading him to the living room. On the way, he glanced at the two rooms with the doors closed. The ceiling light in the living room was turned off, but the bright lights surrounding the fondant cake were still on, shining together with the neon night scene outside the floor-to-ceiling windows that was as vast as a sea of stars. Tao Xi looked at the small coffee table on the wool carpet next to the floor-to-ceiling windows. There was a creamy white cake on it. He hurried over, took off his slippers and walked to the wool carpet, squatted next to the cake, and got close enough to smell the sweet smell. This cake tasted delicious at first glance. He sat down cross-legged next to the coffee table and looked around for the candles, but saw a white cover similar to a notebook next to the coffee table. Tao Xis heart moved and he looked at Lin Qinhe who had also come over and sat down. He pointed to the notebook and asked, What is this? Lin Qinhe also cast his gaze over, his expression turned unnatural for a moment, and he paused for a while before saying, Birthday present for you. Tao Xis eyes were bright, he couldnt help but take the notebook over and asked with a smile: Can I read it now? Lin Qinhe looked at the time, only 20 minutes before 12 oclock. He hesitated and said, Yes. Then turned sideways and turned on the floor lamp, this corner suddenly brightened up. Tao Xi held the notebook and leaned against Lin Qinhe. The cover was a pure white hard leather, the corners were a little sharp. He opened the first page and saw a few words written on the title page: For the seventeen year-old Tao Xi. Tao Xi immediately understood that this should be read after zero. He glanced at Lin Qinhe with some embarrassment, but he couldnt help but continue to turn over a page. He thought he would see what Lin Qinhe had written to him, but when he saw the content clearly, he was taken aback. A photo was posted on the second page. It didnt seem to be a notebook, but a hand-made photo album. The slightly aged photo showed a small baby wrapped in a soft blanket. The baby had clear eyes, two small hands on his chest, and a pacifier in his mouth, seemingly smiling. Below the photo, 1 was written with a pen Tao Xi stared blankly at Lin Qinhe on the side. Lin Qinhe touched his eyes and quickly turned his face to the side. He coughed and said, This is a photo of me when I was one year old. Tao Xi was stunned. He stared at Lin Qinhes face in a daze and could only see Lin Qinhes ears gradually turning red. He couldnt help but laugh, and then lowered his head to look at the baby photo carefully. Sure enough, he could see a few shadows of Lin Qinhe, such as the pair of eyes that were so beautiful when he was a child. He vaguely knew what this album was. He blinked his eyes quickly, lowered his head and continued to look at the baby photo. After looking at it for a long time, he gently touched the babys face on the photo with his fingers before slowly turning to the second page. The second page was also a photo. The little boy in the photo was much older. He was sitting on the floor covered with sponge pads, fiddling with a car toy in his hands. On the sofa beside him sat a handsome mature man with a newspaper in his hand, but his eyes were looking at the boy on the ground. Looking at his eyebrows, he should be the boys father. The number below the photo turned to 2. This was a photo of Lin Qinhe when he was two years old. Tao Xi looked intently at the boy in the photo, and after a while smiled and said, You and your father look alike. Lin Qinhe could not resist glancing at it and said, This is my eldest uncle. After a pause and continued, I lived in my eldest uncles house before I was 5. Tao Xi was stunned, vaguely aware that there might be something hidden inside. He turned slowly back again, looking at every photo for a long time. The 5-year-old Lin Qinhe sitting in a daze on the kindergarten bench with his hands on his cheeks, the 6-year-old Lin Qinhe standing unhappily in front of the elementary school with his small school bag, the 7-year-old Lin Qinhe wearing a small yellow hat visiting the planetarium, the 8-year-old Lin Qinhe sitting upright playing chess with his grandfather, the 9-year-old Lin Qinhe reading English stories at his desk He watched the boy in the photo grow bigger and bigger, from a small baby to a little boy who could run and jump, and then to a handsome teenager who suddenly grew taller and taller, his facial features and expressions became more and more like Lin Qinhe now. Especially the 16-year-old Lin Qinhe. Perhaps it was just last year, he seemed to be in a concert hall, wearing a black suit sitting in front of the piano and playing, with a profoundly indifferent expression on his side. Finally it was Lin Qinhe he was familiar with in his impression. In this photo album, he caught a glimpse of Lin Qinhe in sixteen years that he couldnt see. Although only a little bit. But this point made him extremely happy, and yearned for it. Tao Xi lowered his head to look at the 16-year-old Lin Qinhe. After a long time, he turned back to the next page with a light breath. The photo on the new page was in a familiar classroom. On the last row of desks, a teenager slept with his head resting on his arm. The golden sunlight outside the window spreads in, the teenagers hair and school uniform haloed with a shaggy light edge and eyelashes under the eyelids were also haloed with light gold. The teenagers right wrist was exposed from the school uniform shirt, and on his wrist was a red string bracelet with a turquoise on it. The number under the photo had become 17. Lin Qinhe met Tao Xi when he was seventeen. Tao Xi looked at himself in the photo, blinking hard, and only after a long time did he raise his head and look at Lin Qinhe, who was leaning close beside him. He wanted to laugh, but the sound in his throat when he spoke was a little trembling: You actually took a sneak photo of me while I was taking a nap. Next time I want to take a sneak photo of you back. Lin Qinhe clasped his hands in front of him. The warm yellow light of the floor lamp seeped into his dark gray sweater. He hung his eyes and stayed quiet for a while, tilted his head to look at the photo in the album, and then to Tao Xi who had been looking at him. The long and drooping eyelashes half concealed the soft look at the bottom of the eyes. He said: You can take it openly. Tao Xi smiled. He lowered his head and wanted to continue to turn the page, but found that every page after that was blank, as if waiting for new photos and there was nothing else in this part of Lin Qinhes 17-year-old. He gently stroked the edge of the album with his finger, and after a while, with some nasal voice, asked: What about your 17-year-old photo? Why is it only mine. Lin Qinhe loosened his clasped hands and looked at him, Dont you get to see me every day? Tao Xi froze: En? He didnt understand what Lin Qinhe meant. Lin Qinhe took the paper envelope that was on the side, took out a photo that was just taken tonight, and put it on the next page of the album. He looked at Tao Xi and carefully explained the meaning of sending this album: After the age seventeen we will be together every year, but the sixteen years I missed you, I want to make it up to you. Tao Xis eyes trembled suddenly. He lowered his head to look at the new photo. In the photo, Lin Qinhe was kissing the corner of his eye with a gentle and solemn expression. His fingers on the album curled up, and his heartbeat speeded up uncontrollably. He was not sure what Lin Qinhe meant by missed, was it the missed he thought it was? Lin Qinhes eyes fell on his face, with heavy eyes, like the heavy snow falling to the earth on Christmas Eve, thick and silent. The floor lamp casted a soft warm light from above, gently covering this corner. Tao Xi turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, who was wrapped up in warm yellow light, and held his breath lightly as his fingers unconsciously rubbed the edge of the album At that moment, he felt that Lin Qinhe might know something, but just thinking of this possibility, he could not help but feel timid. He did not know what he was afraid of, and did not know why his eyes were hot, as if something hot was about to roll out from inside. They sat side by side on the soft carpet, so close that they could feel the temperature of each others bodies and hear each others breathing. Lin Qinhe turned his face sideways, looked at the bright neon and flying snow outside the floor-to-ceiling window, and suddenly asked softly: Do you believe in the existence of parallel universes? Tao Xi grabbed the photo album in his hand and shook his head blankly. Lin Qinhe was silent for a while, turned his head to look at him, the light under his eyes, which were always indifferent, flickered slightly, and when he spoke again his voice was a little dumb: I didnt believe it before, but now I wish there was such a parallel universe. In that world, everything follows the original trajectory, you have always been by my side, we grew up together, and every year at Christmas, I would bring gifts to you, together with loved ones who love you, and say to our baby, happy birthday. Tao Xis eyelashes trembled violently. He firmly grasped the photo album in his hand, grasping the sixteen years of time, the sharp leather cover corner stabbed his palm, but he didnt notice it. He opened his mouth, but didnt make a sound, as if he was mute. After working hard for a long time, he could only make a broken and small whimper. Lin Qinhe looked at this person who was trembling and whimpering, his heart hurt like it was being pierced by a blunt knife. He wanted to pull the photo album with sharp corners out of Tao Xis hands, but Tao Xi held the photo album firmly in his arms, as if using all his strength. Lin Qinhe had to stretch out his hand to hug Tao Xi, let him sit on his lap and gently hug him. He said with a dumb and hoarse voice: Sorry, I have missed you in this world for so many years, and owe you so many birthdays. Tao Xis line of sight was completely blurred. He wanted to say that you didnt have to feel sorry for me, but he still couldnt speak. He choked violently, trying hard to hold back the tears, but could only shake his head desperately. Lin Qinhes eyes were completely red, he hugged Tao Xi, gently kissed the corner of his eyes, feeling a hot teardrop on his lips. The heavy snow was still falling outside the window, silently covering up all the mess in the world, like the heavy snow falling over half a mountain seventeen years ago. But the snow would always melt one day, the sun would eventually rise, and then it would be a brand new and bright world. Tao Xi, Ill take you home, okay? Tao Xi could no longer hold back, the tears in his eyes rolled down quickly. He wanted to answer Yes, but his lips trembled lightly and he could only make a mouth shape. He finally let go of the album. He hugged Lin Qinhes neck, buried his head in his shoulder and cried, like all children, without the slightest restraint, choking and sobbing, letting tears wet Lin Qinhes clothes on his shoulders, as if the tears couldnt end. All the hands of the clock pointed to twelve oclock, and it was another year of snowy Christmas. The sweet smell of cake wafting through the silent living room, colorful balloons and bright lights shining like a galaxy behind them. Lin Qinhe hugged the person in his arms tightly, closed his eyes and said softly: My baby, wishing you a happy birthday and a merry Christmas. Since he had lost the name that meant more happiness and joy, then he would spend his life blessing him. Wish his baby Tao Xi to be happy and joyful every day. CH 53 Tao Xi hadnt cried so loudly for a long time. He didnt know how long he had been crying. He could only feel that Lin Qinhe had been holding him firmly, patting him on the back softly, and crying with him patiently. He cried until he was choking and couldnt breath well, and his tears were too dry to come out. Lin Qinhe held his shoulders, kissed him gently on his eyes that were completely red and swollen, and said in a warm voice. Dont cry. Lets have a cake and make a wish together. Tao Xi forcefully opened his sore and stinging eyes, looked straight at Lin Qinhe and found that Lin Qinhes eyes were also red. He sobbed in the ups and downs of his chest and nodded. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis eyes. Those beautiful eyes were wet from crying. The eyelashes were glued into small clusters because of the tears, and the dark pupils gleamed with a subtle light after being moistened with tears. He couldnt resist kissing Tao Xi again at the corner of his eyes, holding his wrist and pulling him up from the carpet in a half hug. Tao Xi was obediently held by Lin Qinhe and walked to the bathroom. After Lin Qinhe dampened the towel with hot water and wrung out, he carefully wiped his face and eyes. At that moment, like a child, he closed his eyes and raised his face slightly, feeling the touch of Lin Qinhes fingers through the soft and moist towel, and occasionally sobbed intermittently After that, Lin Qinhe led him to the dining room and handed him a full glass of warm water. He took the glass of water with both hands and drank, and the intermittent sniffle got better after drinking. It was already past zero, and the neon light outside the floor-to-ceiling windows had already dimmed a lot, only the heavy snow was flying unconsciously. The two teenagers held hands and returned to the carpet next to the floor-to-ceiling windows to sit side by side. In fact, they both had a lot of questions to ask each other, but at the moment they just tacitly and quietly snuggled. Tao Xi hugged his legs and rested his chin on his knees, watching Lin Qinhe take out the cardboard box containing candles from under the coffee table and carefully insert them one by one on the cake. He looked at Lin Qinhes profile, and then at Lin Qinhes fingers inserting candles, his head was empty because he had been crying for too long, but his eyes were full, as if filled with the light of the newly washed sky. Seventeen colorful candles were inserted on the cake. Lin Qinhe took out the lighter he had prepared earlier and asked Tao Xi softly, Want to light the candles yourself? Tao Xi shook his head and said in a dumb voice, I want to see you light them. He used to be at a classmates birthday party and saw their closest relatives lighting the candles on the cake. Lin Qinhe said okay and used a lighter to light the seventeen candles one after another. The warm yellow candlelight lit up in clusters, swaying in the pupils of the two. He turned the floor lamp off on the side, and this corner and the two figures together swayed in the orange candlelight. Close your eyes and make a wish. Lin Qinhes voice was low and soft, turning his face to look at Tao Xi, his long, drooping eyelashes were softly embraced by light and shadow. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe in a daze. It took a while before he slowly moved his eyes to the cake and candles, and then looked at the candles out of focus, as if thinking of something, his eyes suddenly became wet again. Lin Qinhes heart was aching and soft, and he asked in a very soft voice: Whats wrong? Tao Xi shook his head, just squeezed Lin Qinhes hand, and then closed his eyes in the light of the jumping candle. Dear mother, how are you1 doing in heaven? Can you bless your child once more? Bless me and Lin Qinhe with a lifetime of peace and prosperity. Bless our holding hands so it will never be separated. Tao Xi opened his eyes and saw the melting candle flame swaying on the seventeen candles. Obviously it was such a faint light, but it seemed to illuminate all the past seventeen years. He turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, revealing a smile. Lin Qinhe looked at him intently, and with a smile on the corners of his mouth, he asked him, Have you made a wish? Tao Xi nodded his head and held Lin Qinhes hand without letting go as he said, Lets blow out the candles together. Okay. The two heads approached the cake together, and the seventeen clusters of candlelights were extinguished in the flickering and beating, like a sigh on a winter night. Happy birthday. Lin Qinhe whispered to Tao Xi again. After speaking, he leaned his head over. There was still heavy snow outside the window, and every roof was covered with snow-white dreams. The two teenagers in front of the window sat next to each other, kissing each other in the light and interlaced breath, like snowflakes falling into the middle of the lake, the early cherry blossoms all over the embankment, hot and lingering in the silent place. In the end, Tao Xi only ate a small piece of this cake, because Lin Qinhe said that eating too many sweets in the middle of the night was bad for his health. Together with Lin Qinhe, he posted the photo taken in the evening on the next page of the album, and solemnly wrote 17 under the photo with a pen. It was a little too late after it was over. Tao Xi took a bath slowly in the bathroom of the master bedroom. When he came out, he saw Lin Qinhe sitting on the bed in his pajamas, looking down at his phone, apparently having taken a shower in the other bathroom as well. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhes smoky-gray pajamas several times with his two red and swollen eyes. He put on his slippers and walked to the bed, took it off and climbed to Lin Qinhes side, pretending to ask naturally: Where do I sleep? Lin Qinhe put down his phone when he saw him coming out, hugged his waist and put him on his lap. Looking up at him slightly, he said, There is only one bedroom prepared here. Tao Xi sat with his legs apart on Lin Qinhes lap. He wrapped his arms around Lin Qinhes neck and looked at the other pillow next to him, not noticing the word prepared. He asked with a blush on his face. Then what are the other two rooms? He saw two other rooms with the door closed. It was almost two oclock, Lin Qinhe thought for a while before he said to Tao Xi: I will show you now. Tao Xi nodded quickly, he had been curious for a long time. He followed Lin Qinhe towards the outside of the bedroom. The first room opened by Lin Qinhe was a piano room. Tao Xi followed and walked to the black grand piano in the center of the room and circled around the piano, wanting to open the lid but resisted, and only asked. Do you practice piano every day? Lin Qinhe said: No, I practice it once in a while. He lifted the lid and played a small string of notes on the keys with his right hand, and asked Tao Xi, What do you want to hear? Tao Xi thought for a while and then said, The Happy Birthday song. Lin Qinhe then really sat down and played a song Happy Birthday, but he temporarily added a lot of adaptations, a familiar and simple tune became complex and pleasant to the ear. Tao Xi sat beside Lin Qinhe and watched his bony fingers play an almost brand new piece of music on the black and white piano keys. This is a completely new piece, it needs a new name. After Lin Qinhe finished playing, Tao Xi tilted his head to think, his fingers randomly pressing a note on the keys. Lin Qinhe withdrew his hands and looked at him, saying, Its called Happy Birthday, Mr. Tao Xi. Tao Xi remembered the song Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence and was very satisfied with the name. The corners of his mouth lifted up in a smile and he said, Okay, thank you, Mr. Lin Qinhe. Two people walked out of the piano room, Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe to the next and last room. He asked curiously, Is this room a study or a bedroom? Lin Qinhe didnt answer him and opened the door directly. He raised his eyes to look at it, but stood frozen at the door, with nothing in his mind. It was a spacious studio with floor-to-ceiling windows on the whole surface to ensure sufficient daylight. There were three easels of different sizes in the room, large workbenches, drawing boards, lighting lamps, molds, interlining cloth a lot of paints, brushes, drawing paper and other drawing tools had been put in the tall cabinet, and almost everything about painting was readily available. On one side of the wall hung a gouache painting of a clear stream at a mountain col with peach blossoms flowing, once named by his small mind as Creek full of forest flower.2 Tao Xis eyes trembled, as if fireworks and neon lights all over the world were flashing in front of his eyes. He looked dumbfounded for a while before suddenly turning around and reaching out to hug Lin Qinhes waist, burying his forehead in his shoulder, rubbing it back and forth lightly, causing his hair to be messy. Lin Qinhe was itchy when he was rubbed and let out a low laugh. Through the thin pajamas, he could feel the slight vibration of his chest. He asked him, Do you know where you are sleeping now? Tao Xi let out an en, and after being quiet for a while, he raised his head and stared at Lin Qinhe and said: You dont forget what I said. When I make a lot of money in the future, I want to buy a big house with a yard. At that time, you must live in the house I bought. Lin Qinhe rubbed the back of his head and said, Okay, listen to you. Tao Xi walked around the painting room a few times before he reluctantly followed Lin Qinhe back to the master bedroom, and when he saw the big bed again, the little embarrassment came back. He never expected that he could live with Lin Qinhe and sleep together so soon. Do you recognize the bed when you sleep? When Tao Xi heard Lin Qinhe ask himself, he hurriedly answered: No, I dont. He had slept on a straw-padded bed and a broken wooden bed in a ten-person room. This was the first time he had slept in such a big and soft bed, and he had an urge to roll around on the bed. Tao Xi thought so, so he did. He took off his slippers and climbed into bed, rolling around on the bed, from here to there and back again, but then rolled into Lin Qinhes arms. Lin Qinhe took him by the waist, looked at him in amusement and kissed him gently on the forehead before saying: Go to bed early, its late. Tao Xi was quiet in Lin Qinhes arms for a while, but still couldnt resist asking the question he always wanted to ask: How did you know? Knowing what went without saying. Lin Qinhe turned sideways and turned off the light. The bedroom was plunged into darkness, then he covered with the quilt and held Tao Xi in his arms again. He only gave a rough idea of ??hiring people to investigate Taoxi Bay, omitting the details of what that old woman said and what happened to Tao Jian. Tao Xi listened to Lin Qinhe in a daze. Thinking of the previous incident where Lin Qinhe recognized him through his handwriting, the more he felt that Lin Qinhe was so smart and perceptive that it was scary. Why didnt you say it all along? Lin Qinhe asked him in a calm tone. Tao Xi hesitated for a moment and finally only said, I promised my foster mother that I would not tell the truth until I became an adult. But in fact, he didnt take Guo Pings begging to heart. Only he knew the real reason. Lin Qinhes arms around Tao Xis hands suddenly clenched. Fortunately, it was dark in the bedroom. They couldnt see each others expressions. He was silent for a while, suppressing his ups and downs, before saying in a deep voice: She is not qualified to ask this of you, and you do not have to keep your word. Tao Xi let out an en and said, So, I was going to tell you, but I didnt expect you to know first. He was getting sleepy, his eyelids were fighting, and at the same time, he was still excited and wanted to continue talking to Lin Qinhe. At this moment, Lin Qinhe kissed him gently on his forehead again and said softly, Go to sleep, good night. Tao Xi hooked his neck and kissed Lin Qinhe gently on his forehead, and said in a daze, Good night, but I cant seem to sleep. Despite saying that, maybe he was tired of crying, or maybe the secret was finally relieved, but Tao Xi fell asleep in less than 10 minutes. And instead, Lin Qinhe didnt fall asleep. He opened his eyes in the dark, listening to Tao Xis shallow breathing, his expression was almost gloomy. He said that he would take Tao Xi to his home, but he knew that his home was not just a few blood related people living under one roof. He would definitely let Tao Xi recognize his family, but could Tao Xi truly return to that so-called new family? How would he get along with the relatives whom he had never lived with for seventeen years? The family members themselves were at odds with each other, and Yang Duole, who had been raised for more than ten years, was also sandwiched between them. Would Tao Xis sensitive character be hurt and wronged in this new family during the adjustment period? He had to think carefully, but he was after all an outsider to the Fang family and Yang family, not qualified to say anything. So he must first give Tao Xi a home and give him an eternal retreat. He even thought that if those relatives could not accept Tao Xi well. Then he would be happy to be Tao Xis only family member. the polite you ֻϪ C ln hu mn x CH 54 Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xi who was still asleep on the bed, and gently walked outside the bedroom and closed the door behind him before picking up the phone. Qinhe, one of Tao Jians colleagues told me that he saw Tao Jian at Hannan Hospital yesterday afternoon. Su Yun said over the phone. Lin Qinhe walked to the living room and asked: Is he alone? Su Yun said: The employee only saw Tao Jian, originally planned to ask Tao Jian a few words, but Tao Jian didnt look very good so he left without saying anything. Lin Qinhe thanked Su Yun. After hanging up the phone, he planned to call Tao Xi to get up, but Tao Xi had already come out of the bedroom, standing with his hair sticking up, looking blankly at him with a pair of swollen eyes. Lin Qinhe couldnt hold back a laugh, walked over and raised his hand to rub Tao Xis hair, saying, Go wash up, breakfast is ready. Tao Xi nodded dully and went to the bathroom. When he saw the mirror, his face collapsed instantly. He leaned in front of the mirror and saw his double eyelids become swollen and wide. No wonder Lin Qinhe laughed just now. Its over, how to meet him in the afternoon. He washed up quickly, ate a sumptuous breakfast with Lin Qinhe in the dining room, and used an ice pack on his eyes for half a day until Lin Qinhe said they were no longer swollen, and then he and Lin Qinhe spent time together on the sofa. Tao Xi found the TV remote and planned to turn on the TV when he heard Lin Qinhe ask him: What time do you go to Grandpa Qiaos place this afternoon? He put the remote control aside and said to Lin Qinhe, Usually its two oclock, but today Grandpa Qiao is taking me to meet a senior painter, so I have to go there before one oclock. Ever since Qiao Henian knew he wanted to apply to a school abroad, he had been looking for an opportunity to take him to meet some famous painters. Lin Qinhe said, Then I will take you there this afternoon. Tao Xi agreed. After hesitating, he still asked Lin Qinhe: Dont you have to go home for the birthday party in the afternoon? Not going. Lin Qinhe frowned, and then quickly loosened, giving a brief and concise answer. Tao Xi pretended to make an Oh indifferently, but was a little happy in his heart. He took a sip of water from the coffee table and covered the corners of his mouth. Lets go to your grandparents house with me next Saturday. Tao Xis heart jumped, and the hand holding the cup paused, listening to Lin Qinhe continue: This week, Grandpa Fang will return to his hometown to worship his ancestors. He will probably not be back until the 30th. They will get together on the night of the 31st for the New Year. Lin Qinhes tone was very calm. This was his intention after thinking again and again, he did not want to delay this matter for too long, so as not to cause complications. It just happened that his competition would end on Friday the 30th. He could also take advantage of this week to make some preparations. Tao Xi lowered his eyes slightly, holding the cup with both hands and rubbing the wall of the cup unconsciously with his fingers. Instead of answering quickly, he asked Lin Qinhe, Can you tell me about my grandparents? He had only seen the two old people from a distance through the ward door. In that brief impression, the grandpas hair was mostly white, and a pair of silver-rimmed glasses hung around his neck. He looked serious. The grandma wore a bun and dressed in an elegantly clothed a cheongsam with exquisite fabrics, looking intellectual and elegant and was full of artist temperament Okay. Lin Qinhe began to give him a detailed introduction. His grandfather, Fang Zuqing, was a professor at the Academy of Life Sciences of Wenhua University, and was also the dean before he retired, bringing up many outstanding students and being the leading scholar in the field of Life Sciences in China. His grandmother, Ye Yurong, was a famous ballet dancer who had won many awards in dance competitions when she was young, and she also had many students. The two old people were considered to be full of peaches and plums.1 Tao Xi listened in silence, suddenly feeling very close to his grandparents, yet very far away. He kept his head down until Lin Qinhe reached out and gently held his chin, making him lift his head. He pinched his cheek and said to him, They will love you. Tao Xi rested his chin on Lin Qinhes palm, lifted his eyes and asked, Really? Lin Qinhe said with certainty, Of course, no one will dislike you. Tao Xi knew that Lin Qinhe was reassuring him. He took away the uneasiness on his face, rubbed his chin in the palm of Lin Qinhes hand, smiled and said, I am not RMB. He finally promised Lin Qinhe that he would go to his grandparents house with him next Saturday. This was something he had to face, and only he could face it alone. Today, the snow finally stopped. After lunch, Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe out the door and saw that the garden in the community was covered with silver. Seeing that many children were making snowmen on the snow in the garden of the community, he had itchy hands and wanted to play, but there wasnt enough time, so he had to withdraw his gaze and follow Lin Qinhe to the outside. Lin Qinhe glanced at the child who was making a snowman and said to Tao Xi: You can go skiing during the New Years holiday. Tao Xis face was half wrapped in a scarf, revealing a pair of bright eyes looking at Lin Qinhe. Just as he wanted to say Okay, the light in his eyes suddenly dimmed. The thought of meeting grandparents on the 31st made his stomach cramp with nervousness. Lin Qinhe put Tao Xis hand into his pocket and said, Dont always think about it during this time, everything will pass naturally. Tao Xi let out a breath and gave an en The two rode a car to the entrance of the Qiao family house. After getting off, Tao Xi couldnt help but jump on the edge of the flower bed, stepping on the fluffy snow to make two deep footprints, and asked Lin Qinhe, Where are you going this afternoon? Lin Qinhe reached out to hold Tao Xis arm and led him down from the edge of the flower bed, saying, Im going back to my uncles house, come pick you up when youre done. Tao Xi nodded, stepped on the snow and walked into the Qiao family house, turning around and waving at Lin Qinhe before entering the door. Lin Qinhe watched Tao Xi close the door before he turned around and stopped a cab, even Christmas songs were playing in the cab on Christmas Day. The driver casually asked, Where to? Hannan Hospital. The road may be a bit congested today, plus it just snowed, I wont drive too fast. Its okay. After Lin Qinhe finished, he took out his phone with the intention of making a call to Su Yun, but he received a call from Luo Zhengyin first. There was a faint sound of people on the other side of the phone, signaling that the villa was bustling with activity. Luo Zhengyin seemed to be walking a little farther away and said after getting through. Qinhe, arent you coming back this afternoon? The birthday party has already started. Many of your classmates and friends are here, Leles grandparents also oame over, they asked me why you are not here. Lin Qinhe looked out the window, his gaze was calm: I have something to do this afternoon, please say hello to Grandpa Fang and Grandma Ye for me. The sound of a door closing came from the other end of the phone. Luo Zhengyin seemed to close a door, and the noisy voices were immediately isolated. She hesitated for a while, and said softly: Qinhe, although I know youll be upset if I say this, but today is after all Leles birthday. From zero oclock until now, you havent made a single phone call to him, not even a happy birthday. He asked me where youve been, I dont know how to tell him. Lin Qinhe held the phone in silence, his heart suddenly caged with a layer of deep sadness. His mother felt it was unacceptable that he didnt wish Yang Duole happy birthday. What would she think if she knew that Fang Suis real child had lived very hard in a remote mountain village for so many years, and no one had ever said a happy birthday to him today? At that moment he even wanted to question Luo Zhengyin, but he knew that this poor woman had actually never really gotten out of depression at all. A life lived in obsession, only to transfer the obsession from a dead person, to another wrong person. In the end, Lin Qinhe just said, The gift for Lele is on the desk in my room, you can give it to him for me. Here. After the driver parked the car near Hannan Hospital, he handed the printed QR code to Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe said No, then took out his wallet, took out the money from it and handed it to the driver. The driver was surprised to receive the money and jokingly said, Nowadays, young people are all paying by phone, there are almost no more people who give cash like you. Lin Qinhe didnt answer, but only said thank you. He looked down at the photo in the transparent compartment of the wallet, closed the wallet before he opened the cars door and walked out. Tao Xi followed Qiao Henian in his classic car. Qiao Henian carried the parrot cage, teased the parrot for a while, and after finding nothing good coming out of the parrots mouth, he threw the cage to Tao Xi and asked, Have you handed in the painting of the contest? Tao Xi took the cage in a hurry and was scolded by the parrot for being a little brat. He quickly replied: It was submitted a long time ago, and it seems that the works selected in the first round will be publicly displayed online soon. Qiao Henian turned on the radio and played an old tune, hummed along a few times and then said indifferently: Youll be fine in the first round, Old Zhong said so last time, he was a judge in the last session. Tao Xi finally calmed down the cursing parrot and jokingly said, Thank you grandpa for taking me to see senior Zhong. If I win the prize, I will use the prize money to buy grandpa a parrot that can compliment people. Zhong Qiusheng was an old friend of Qiao Henian for many years, an old man with deep seniority in the Calligraphy and Painting Association. He came to Qiaos house as a guest one Sunday before, and Qiao Henian brought Tao Xi to meet with him. Qiao Henian laughed and scolded: This brat is not learned from me, but if that Tang girl is obedient, my parrot can also win the community civilization award. The car drove to a private courtyard on the outskirts of the city. Qiao Henian took Tao Xi to meet with his old friend Zhong Qiusheng, who had met Tao Xi last time and had a good impression of the child. He smiled and patted Tao Xis shoulder, saying, My incompetent grandson is here today, named Zhong Shan, about the same age as you, go play with him. Tao Xi looked through the floor-to-ceiling glass outside the courtyard, a boy in a thick down jacket was cowering in the snow, building a snowman. He answered okay, knowing that the two old men would be drinking tea and chatting in the tea room, so he consciously put on his shoes and went out. Qiao Henian and Zhong Qiusheng sat down in the tea room. Zhong Qiusheng could be regarded as half a tea master. This tea room was elegantly furnished and all the utensils were of great value. He brewed the tea slowly, poured a cup and handed it to Qiao Henian, saying: This student of yours is indeed very similar to your previous female student named Fang, I was a bit surprised last time I saw it. Qiao Henian was not accustomed to the tea ceremony. He smothered the tea in one gulp, sighed in Zhong Qiushengs glare, and said: Unfortunately, my female student left early. I have also met her son. Professor Fang once tried every means to send him to me to learn to draw. I asked the child to paint a few times casually, and it was obvious that the child didnt inherit any of his mothers talent and refused to accept it anyway. He had always been impartial. Many of his friends children wanted to learn art, so they would put their children in his care, but as long as he felt that they couldnt do it, he wouldnt accept it, so as not to ruin his reputation. That is quite a pity, the mothers talent is not inherited. Zhong Qiusheng no longer poured tea to Qiao Henian, and sipped the tea slowly by himself, But theres no telling about heredity, my grandson didnt inherit anything from me. Qiao Henian was angry when he talked about grandchildren. After scolding his granddaughter with an old friend, he suddenly remembered his business, and hurriedly said with some kindness: You havent forgotten what I told you last time? Just the recommendation letter. Zhong Qiusheng hummed and laughed: You really worry too much about the student. Its certainly enough with your recommendation, and you still have to drag me. He said so, and put a letter that had been prepared a long time ago on the table. Qiao Henian took the letter, read it from start to finish, and nodded in satisfaction. Tao Xi picked up a big snowball on the ground and put it on the snowmans body. Zhong Shan, who was on the side, quickly inserted the carrots that had already been prepared on the snowmans head, then handed two grapes to Tao Xi and said with a smile, You can do it for the eyes. Tao Xi shook his head with a cold expression: You can get it yourself, Im going inside. Because of Zhong Qiushengs face, he greeted this man named Zhong Shan friendly, and ended up being entangled here and piled up three snowmen in the afternoon. He didnt even have time to see Zhongs gallery. Tao Xi stepped on the snow and walked to the villa while asking where Lin Qinhe was on his phone. Lin Qinhe quickly replied almost there. He looked down at his phone, his face could not help but smile, but suddenly he was grabbed by a hand. Zhong Shan approached him and said with a smile on his face: Friend, add a WeChat. Tao Xi didnt have any expressions: I dont have WeChat. He felt that this person was a bit strange, and always looked at him with an ambiguous gaze when stacking snowmen. Zhong Shan glanced at the WeChat interface on Tao Xis phone, thinking that the refusal was him just being polite. At this time, the sound of footsteps on the snow approached, Tao Xi turned his head to look, and saw that it was Lin Qinhe. It was almost dusk, the sky was a bit gloomy. In the snow-filled pine forest, Tao Xi felt the whole world brighten up, he broke away from Zhong Shans hand, stepped on the snow and ran quickly to Lin Qinhe. Youre not almost there, youre already here. He smiled and said to Lin Qinhe. If there werent outsiders around, he would have jumped over and pounced Lin Qinhe into the snow. Lin Qinhe glanced at Zhong Shan, who was following him, and then at the three shapeless snowmen not far away, and asked Tao Xi, Can go back? Tao Xi nodded and said, Ill just go and talk to Grandpa Qiao and Grandpa Zhong. Lin Qinhe?! Why are you here? Zhong Shan looked at Lin Qinhe in disbelief, then glanced at Tao Xi, Do you know each other? Zhong Shan was in the same school as Lin Qinhe in junior high school, so it was impossible not to know this famous genius. Not to mention, the elders of the two also had contacts, but he and Lin Qinhe were not acquainted. Lin Qinhe took off his scarf and handed it to Tao Xi, saying in a flat tone, Im here to pick him up and take him home. Zhong Shans mouth opened wide in shock and he didnt react for a long time, but when he did, the two boys had already walked away side by side. Tao Xi bid farewell to the two old people before following Lin Qinhe back to their home by car, but on the way Lin Qinhe had not said much. When he asked a few questions, Lin Qinhe would answer, but he was not very interested. When they returned to the community, the sky was completely dark. On the way through the garden, Tao Xi suddenly said to Lin Qinhe, Shall we build a snowman? Lin Qinhe paused in his steps, then continued walking, saying indifferently, Theres not much snow. It didnt snow much during the day, so there really wasnt much snow left in the garden, and in some places, it was trampled on so often that the snow was even a little dirty. Tao Xi ignored Lin Qinhes words and directly held Lin Qinhes hand, pulling him to find a quieter corner where the snow was still clean. He squatted down, picked up a pile of snow with both hands, compacted it into a small ball with his palm, and said to Lin Qinhe, who also squatted down, This is the head, Ive already made it. Lin Qinhe also picked up a pile of snow, made a bigger snowball, cupped his hands on the snow, and then looked at Tao Xi. Tao Xi put the small snowball he made on the big snowball, picked up a few twigs and a few small stones, and put his eyes and hands in the snowman. Lifting up the little snowman from the ground, he said to Lin Qinhe: You can give it a name. Lin Qinhe frowned as he looked at the snowman with crooked eyes and slanted lips: Its ugly, forget it. Although it was too ugly, the snowman was taken back by Lin Qinhe and carefully placed in the freezer of the refrigerator. Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhe quietly open the refrigerator every day to observe whether the snowman had melted. a garden full of peaches and plum: got many students all over the world CH 55 Tao Xi! Your painting has been selected for the CAC preliminary round! When Tao Xi received Qiao Yitangs call, he was packing Lin Qinhes luggage for the next days competition in Beijing. He squatted down on the floor holding his phone, and before he could open his mouth to say anything, his ears were filled with Qiao Yitangs excited voice. Let me tell you, you are the only one shortlisted in our school this year. I guess you will become the number one public enemy of the art class haha! But the most angry must be the female devil, Jiang Lei, none of her students were shortlisted. If you win the award, you have to treat me to a meal. After all, Im also half your valued friend, right? Tao Xi stood up from the ground and thanked her seriously after Qiao Yitangs excitement was over. Qiao Yitang listened to his calm tone and sighed: How do you become more and more like Lin Qinhe? Its good news and youre still calm. its not a pretense, ba. Tao Xi thought that Lin Qinhe was always calm, and couldnt hold back his joy. After talking to Qiao Yitang, he hung up the phone. Lin Qinhe put down the luggage he was packing and came over, asking: Youre a finalist in the preliminary round? Tao Xi nodded, but there was no joy on his face. He said: Its still far from winning the prize. After all, there are many finalists in the preliminary round. The CAC competition was divided into two rounds. Due to the large number of participants, in the first round, 100 paintings would be selected to be publicly displayed on the competitions official website for the public to vote, but in fact the voting was only to increase the interactivity of the competition. The impact of the voting results was minimal, the final award was still judged by the most professional judges, and most of these judges were long-established and prestigious artists. Tao Xi went to the CAC website on his computer and saw that his work was No. 82 in the exhibition area. After midnight, the voting channel would be officially opened. He turned off the computer, walked to the black luggage that had just been put away by Lin Qinhe, sitting on it holding the trolley bar and sliding his legs in front of Lin Qinhe. He raised his head to look at Lin Qinhe eagerly and said, I dont want to go to school anymore, you can pack me up tomorrow and take me away. Lin Qinhe thought about it and said seriously: Ill ask for a leave for you. Its still not too late to buy a ticket. After finishing speaking, he really took out his mobile phone, wanting to buy a ticket. Tao Xi was shocked and hurriedly pulled Lin Qinhes hand and said with wide eyes, Im just kidding, I dont want to miss class. But Lin Qinhe took it seriously. He raised his eyebrows and looked at Tao Xi, and suddenly pushed the luggage. Tao Xi was so scared that he hugged the lever, but Lin Qinhe just pushed him around the living room, like pushing a childs car. Tao Xi suddenly found it very interesting and pestered Lin Qinhe to push himself a few more turns. The next day Tao Xi took a taxi to school alone, because Lin Qinhe had to catch a morning flight, the two only had time to eat breakfast together. Towards the end of the term, the atmosphere in the entire school became tense. The large and small exams smashed the students into confusion. Except for the students in the art class who were suffering from failing to enter the CAC, the non-art classes like Class 1 had almost never heard of CAC, but the head teacher Zhou Qiang found out about it from the art class teacher and went to Tao Xi at noon to congratulate him and encourage him. Tao Xi was hungry but was dragged by Zhou Qiang to speak for 20 minutes, and his ears were full of you are great, good boy, and promising until his stomach was so hungry that he cried out. Zhou Qiang suddenly realized that Tao Xi hadnt eaten yet, so he quickly let go. Tao Xi rushed to the cafeteria, and when he entered the cafeteria, he ran into Yang Duole and Xu Ziqi who were coming out. Yang Duole glanced at him, but there was no expression. Xu Ziqis eyes were a little evasive, and the two quickly missed each other and walked away. Tao Xi looked back at the back of the two people and took his meal card to go for dinner. After a quick meal, he returned to the classroom and walked towards the last row of seats as usual, but keenly sensed that there was something wrong with the atmosphere in the class Several classmates were looking at him quietly, and quickly lowered their heads after meeting his gaze. A few familiar students like Li Xiaoyuan and Bi Chengfei saw him and gathered around with anxious faces. Xi ge, whats the matter with that CAC competition of yours? As soon as Bi Chengfei came over, he grabbed Tao Xi and walked to the corridor outside the classroom, without his usual playful smile, both eyebrows were almost knotted together. Whats the matter? Tao Xi was staggered by Bi Chengfei and frowned. After Li Xiaoyuan looked around for a few times to confirm that there was no one, he handed his mobile phone to Tao Xi and whispered: Look at this Weibo. Now it has been forwarded a lot. Tao Xi took the phone and looked at it. This was a long Weibo. It was published dozens of minutes ago. The publisher was a yellow V. The ID was Things about Wenhua Academy of Fine Arts. It was obviously a Weibo submission platform. The Weibo title was very eye-catching: CAC Preliminary No. 82 works plagiarize the first prize of the Golden Cup competitions work. Tao Xi squinted his eyes and continued to look down. The text first released the comparison between his work and the first prize of the Golden Cup that he had never heard of. The two paintings were almost the same; except for the slight difference in color, the line composition and creativity were almost the same. If it werent for the two paintings to have different sources of competition, it was guessed that many people who didnt know how to paint would think that the two paintings were just adjusted by software. The anonymous poster did not directly name the authors of the two paintings, but only used the acronyms TX and FYD, and compared the publication time of the two paintings with the platform. Obviously, the Golden Cup announced the winning results last week, while CAC only announced the preliminary results yesterday. From the time of publication of the works, there was a significant time difference between the two paintings. Then the contributor, as an alumnus from the same university as FYD, described in a provocative manner how FYD came from a poor background, and how he was excellent in character and academics, and how difficult it was for him to win the first prize of the Golden Cup this time. Tao Xi didnt read the whole nonsense that followed, and turned directly to the Weibo comment sections. There were thousands of comments. Those who had good things had already picked up the information and wrote the names of the two authors directly, FYD was Feng Yadong. Are my eyes wrong? This is not plagiarism, this is simply copy and paste, right? How can a competition as big as CAC pass this kind of work and still let it be shortlisted for the preliminary round? Are the judges brains eaten by dogs? Im going to send an email to complain and report. This painting is really good, although I cant understand it. But why did the author enter the Golden Cup, such a dirty little competition? He should have registered for CAC. I checked, the person who plagiarized is a high school student, from Wenhua No. 1 High School. Why did such a powerful high school produce such a person? Its not easy to study in Wenhua No. 1 High School. Who knows whether the parents asked for the gunman, but the gunman irresponsibly copied other peoples paintings directly. These comments were still calm, there were more unpleasant insults. All the sharp accusations and attacks pointed to Tao Xi alone. There had even been rumors that Tao Xi had a profound background with every detail vividly described. 1 A poor college student was plagiarized by a famous high school student from a powerful family, and was also shortlisted for a competition with better influence. It could easily ignite the publics sensitivity in connection with the news that high-school parents helped their children fake research papers not long ago. Even if everything was just speculation, no one cared about the true or false. The maliciousness on the Internet was crazy and cheap. They only needed a target and enjoyed the pleasure of knocking down the target. The truth was not important. Tao Xi looked at the Weibo post with a straight face, and saw that there had been three or four big Vs forwarding it. The words were intense and full of gunpowder, and things that had not been finalized were anxious to rise to various levels, for fear that they would not disturb the public opinion. Xi ge, we definitely believe in you, its definitely someone who is messing with you! Bi Chengfei said with an indignant expression. In his mind, Tao Xi would never do such a thing. Li Xiaoyuan was afraid that Tao Xi saw too many bad remarks and hurriedly took the phone back from Tao Xis hand, he actually didnt quite understand what was going on and could only comfort him meaninglessly: Yes, all of us in the first class will be on your side. Two people gathered around Tao Xi, comforting and reassuring Tao Xi back and forth, for fear that Taoxi couldnt stand the stimulation, only to find that the person concerned was calm from beginning to end, only frowning when reading the weibo post. Tao Xis cell phone vibrated. He took it out and saw that it was Lin Qinhes call. After thanking the two of them, he walked away to get the call. Tao Xi, I have already asked for leave for you. You should take a taxi and go home directly. Dont look at the phone when you go back. Wait for me at home. Ill be there soon in the afternoon. I probably know what happened. Dont be afraid, it will be resolved soon. Lin Qinhe spoke a little fast, but his voice was still as calm as usual. Tao Xi walked to the corner of the corridor, looking at the dead branches outside the balcony, and said to Lin Qinhe. Dont come back, take the exam with peace of mind tomorrow. I can handle this matter myself. Lin Qinhe paused, and said without a doubt: I have already bought a plane ticket. Tao Xi took a deep breath and after a moment of silence, he still said stubbornly, I wanted to tell you after the competition because I didnt want to affect your competition. If you come back, all my previous plans will be in vain. After he finished speaking, he was suddenly patted on his shoulder with a hand. He turned his head to see it was Qiao Yitang with a solemn expression, she whispered to him, Grandpa asked me to take you back. Tao Xi nodded his head and continued to say to the silent Lin Qinhe over there, Really, you believe me, I will take care of it. You can take the exam in peace, I still want to see you get the national first prize. He told Lin Qinhe several times. After a few minutes, Lin Qinhe still did not explicitly agree, but only gave him a persons business card on WeChat, the name was Su Yun. Tao Xi opened WeChat and found that there were many new messages sent to him by classmates. Some said they believed him, some comforted him, and some were aggrieved. He was a little surprised because he had been in this class for only less than six months,he hadnt expected to gain the trust of his classmates in this matter. After getting in the taxi, Tao Xi added Su Yuns WeChat account. Su Yun first sent him a bunch of information, including Feng Yadongs personal information and past paintings. He carefully looked at it from beginning to end. This person was really a poor student, a sophomore at Wenhua Academy of Fine Arts, and had participated in many art competitions. At first glance, his resume was not bad. Qiao Yitang sat aside to look at the comments of that weibo post, and at this time, the number of comments doubled again. The latest comments cursed him extremely hard. Her eyes were red with anger, and she couldnt wait to tear a big tear in the comments. After thinking about it, she resisted, and cursed a few swear words in a low voice. Tao Xi looked at Qiao Yitang with his head tilted and said reassuringly: Dont look at it, just let them swear. Qiao Yitang froze. Seeing that the person who should be most angry had a calm face and not a bit of panic, she asked angrily: Why are you not anxious? I just saw you calling Lin Qinhe so calmly, thinking that you were pretending to be calm so as not to worry him. As a result, youre really fine? She was almost dying of anxiety. Plagiarism in artistic creation was the easiest to be unclear. Once you got this hat, it would affect the reputation of the creator all his life. Tao Xi was going to apply for a foreign school soon. If he left a disgraceful mark in the CAC contest, absolutely no school will accept him. After all, its not like I did this. Tao Xi smiled at Qiao Yitang. Leaning back on the back of the seat and raising his eyelids, he zoomed in on the first prize painting of the Golden Cup on the phone. After looking at it carefully for a while, he found a persons WeChat ID in the WeChat address book, clicked into the circle of friends, and found a few pictures among a bunch of selfies to open them. б C has nose and eyes ; a metaphors which means to speak fictional things as if they are real CH 56 Qiao Yitang was worried along the way, seeing that the post was pushed to the top of Weibo, more and more people poured into the comment section, indiscriminately abusing Tao Xi, and even Wenhua No.1 High School and CAC organizers were scolded. She glanced at Tao Xi, who actually closed his eyes and leaned on the back of the chair to rest up his mind. She suddenly turned off the phone angrily, thinking that this kid might have been possessed by Lin Qinhe, such a big thing could be ignored. The taxi finally drove to Qiaos house. Qiao Yitang and Tao Xi got out of the car. She pulled Tao Xi into the door and rushed to complain to her grandpa for a solution, but when Qiao Henian saw Tao Xi, he grabbed his ear and shouted: You little brat, how many times have I told you not to draw the competition draft in other peoples place, lock the painting and dont leave it casually but youve turned a deaf ear to it! Now youve been copied and youve been slapped! The calmness on Tao Xis face disappeared, and he hurriedly begged for mercy: I was wrong, I was wrong grandpa. Zhong Qiusheng, who was teasing the parrot in the living room, came over and calmly said to Tao Xi, I have already talked to the chairman of this years jury. Later you will have a video conference with them, give them the evidence and talk about your creative ideas, they will understand at a glance. Qiao Henian let go of Tao Xis ears and slapped him again on the back: Go and bring the copyright certificate that you have done before! Tao Xi hurriedly ran upstairs. Qiao Yitang, who was completely confused about the situation, looked at his grandfather and then at Zhong Qiusheng, who was here for some reason, and asked in a daze, What copyright certificate? It was only when Tao Xi came over with the certificate and went to the study with Zhong Qiusheng to have a video conference with the jury of the CAC organizer that Qiao Yitang finally understood what was going on from his grandfather. Half a month ago, Tao Xi went to Qiaos house after finishing the competition draft, and went to register the copyright of the painting with Qiao Henian. It was reasonable that an artistic work automatically owned the copyright from the moment it was completed, but if it was not published publicly, it was difficult to prove that the work was the authors original and pioneering work. There were countless examples of exploiting this loophole to steal the results of others. If Tao Xi wanted to participate in the competition, it was naturally impossible for him to publish his work publicly in advance, but he registered the copyright so it was different. The creation completion date on the copyright certificate was far earlier than Feng Yadongs publication in the Golden Cup, and Feng Yadong could never have published evidence earlier than him. Not only that, Tao Xi also visited Zhong Qiusheng with Qiao Henian on that day. This painting master had served as the chairman and consultant of the CAC jury for many years. This time, CAC had received a lot of reports, and if Zhong Qiusheng had not guaranteed Tao Xis participation, it was very likely that Tao Xis drawings would have been removed first due to the pressure of public opinion. The meeting lasted for half an hour. During the whole process, Tao Xi was the only one who spoke to the CAC jury on camera, while Zhong Qiusheng just sat far away and watched. Tan Shan, the chairman of this years jury, was also a student of Zhong Qiusheng, but he didnt shield Tao Xi with his personal feelings, and asked him many questions with a serious face. Throughout the process Tao Xi was calm and unhurried, showing the jury his creative ideas and details, as well as his many evidences of his originality. One of the pieces of evidence eased the faces of the judges. Tan Shan even made a joke to Tao Xi: Youre so young, youve actually prepared everything. Now, the people who slander you will have nothing to say. After the meeting, Qiao Yitang quickly walked into the study and asked Tao Xi, What did the jury say? It should believe you now, right? Tao Xi nodded and said calmly, I will keep my work. Qiao Yitang breathed a sigh of relief and almost jumped for joy: Great! You can still continue to participate in the semi-final! Tao Xi respectfully thanked Zhong Qiusheng. This time it was because of Zhong Qiushengs help, Zhong Qiusheng kindly patted Tao Xis shoulder and said with a smile: I cant help you with the online stuff, I believe you can handle it yourself. Tao Xi sent Zhong Qiusheng to the living room downstairs, and then joined Qiao Yitang in the study to discuss how to send a counterattack weibo post. It should be enough to have this certificate, ba. Feng Yadong definitely cant come up with evidence for earlier publication. Qiao Yitang sat in front of the computer to draft a long Weibo post, placing the photo of the certificate in the first entry. But he can continue to stir up nonsense, saying that it was his negligence not leaving evidence of the first creation and then backtrack. Tao Xi sat aside and supported his chin, calmly analyzing. Qiao Yitang frowned and thought for a while. Indeed, as Tao Xi said, although from a legal point of view, Tao Xi had absolute copyright and could directly sue the other party for infringement and defamation, but the other party apparently bought a lot of water army and stirred up muddy water on the Internet as a vulnerable person. It was not impossible that it was a deliberate and premeditated attempt to slander Tao Xis copyright registration by disturbing the muddy water on the Internet. After all, this kind of thing has happened before. She was thinking hard when she suddenly saw Tao Xi holding the mouse and opening the painting he had created. The details of the painting on the large computer screen were in full view. Take a closer look at the painting, can you find anything? Tao Xi looked at her, curled his mouth and smiled. Qiao Yitang stared at the painting in a daze. This was an abstract oil painting called Self. She had seen it many times. The style of the oil painting was a bit suprematist, full of seemingly irregular lines and geometric forms, presenting dynamics and collisions in the surface clutter, expressing the exploration of the self and the universe in a limited concentration of colors. After observing it intently for a while, she suddenly noticed something different about the lines in the lower right corner of the painting. It took up a small proportion and blended in with the whole painting, and couldnt be seen without a careful look. This is? Qiao Yitang pointed her finger at the lower right corner of the painting. Tao Xi leaned back on the back of the chair and said without any haste, This is my signature, in Morse code. Qiao Yitang suddenly realized that she could understand Morse code. In the lower right corner, the thickness and length of each line was disorderly, but together they formed the five English letters corresponding to Morse code-TAOXI. Oil painters had a variety of signature forms. Many painters would sign directly on the corners of the paintings, and many painters would integrate the signatures into the props and patterns in the paintings. For example, in a sunflower oil painting by Van Gogh, the signature was on the ceramic vase. Tao Xi did not sign the name directly, but incorporated the Morse code of the name in the painting. Qiao Yitang hurriedly opened the painting of Feng Yadong on the computer again, and after zooming in on the lower right corner, she found that the man had completely copied Tao Xis painting that even the other persons signature was drawn just the same. This name is the main reason why the CAC jury believed me. Tao Xi looked at the signature on the imitation and said with a bit of playfulness. The painting could be stolen and replaced, and the publication date could be unclear, but the signature of the creator could not be turned upside down, although ironically, the name did not belong to him originally. Qiao Yitang couldnt help but fall back on the chair and laugh out loud, saying, Even if this Feng Yadong copied the painting, he actually drew it exactly as it was, and didnt change a bit. Tao Xi took a sip of water and said in a positive tone, This painting should not be his painting. I can see it after seeing his previous paintings. Just as an art teacher once said, painting was the same as writing. The handwriting of the same person could be recognized no matter how disguised it was. Some characters couldnt be changed in this life if they were used to writing. The same was true for painting. Its not him, then who is it? Qiao Yitang froze, tilted her head to think, but also, he is a college student and doesnt know you, where did he get your painting? Tao Xi clasped his hands in front of his chest, and asked, Right, where did he get it? Qiao Yitang suddenly turned her head to look at Tao Xi, who had been terribly calm from the beginning. She narrowed her eyes and asked, Do you already know who did it? She even had an even more absurd idea. After painting the competition draft, he immediately applied for copyright registration, and then took the painting to meet with CACs previous judges chairman Zhong Qiusheng. The Morse code of his own name was also left in the painting, leaving no tracePerhaps it could be explained that this person was extremely cautious, but how could such a cautious person accidentally leak out his paintings? Just like a prophet. Tao Xi shook his head, looking innocent: I dont know. Qiao Yitang was suspicious but only said: Lets check later, lets slap this Feng Yadong in the face first. The two began to write a long Weibo post. Tao Xi wrote the clarification text himself and Qiao Yitang helped Tao Xi organize the timeline and evidence on the computer. In addition to the copyright certificate, there were also daily progress photos taken by Tao Xi from the first day of the first draft of the painting, each of which was labeled with a date to clearly show the complete creation process of the painting. At eight oclock in the evening, a newly registered Weibo account posted a long article with a title of only seven words: To the plagiarist Feng Yadong. The long article clearly displayed various pieces of evidence, such as copyright certificates, creation progress photos, hidden signatures of the paintings, creation inspiration and ideas In addition, there were clarifications on Tao Xis family background, but Tao Xi did not adopt Qiao Yitangs suggestion to exaggerate how poor his family was in the article. He simply and objectively stated that he had benefited from the remote live broadcast project to have the opportunity to study at Wenhua No. 1 High School. The last sentence of the long article was: I will hold Feng Yadong and the slanderer accountable in accordance with the law. There was no room for tolerance for Feng Yadong. The new Weibo post had no attention at all. Fortunately, Su Yun helped them contact an online public relations company, so that many big V bloggers with great influence in related fields reposted this Weibo, and invited some online media to report the matter. Due to large-scale online announcements, the number of reposts and comments on this Weibo post increased sharply, and it quickly became popular on Weibo, much higher than that of slanderous Weibo. The entire Weibo article was written in a rational and restrained manner, without any hint of emotion or exaggeration, the evidence was clear and the matter was clear at a glance. The slanderous Weibo was completely overturned; the person who identified the plagiarism was the plagiarist, and the high school students who came from the powerful and took shortcuts in the rumor was a poor student who relied on his own hard work and good academics. The dramatic reversal had always attracted the attention and discussion of netizens, especially the Morse code signature in the painting would defeat all slanders and doubts. After all, no one was stupid enough to sign someone elses name in his painting. I thought it was the real hammer,1 but the result was reversed? Also reverse so thoroughly? I was a just netizen at noon to help Feng Yadong report and curse people, and now its as disgusting as eating a fly! I apologize for the comments I sent at noon. The evidence in this counter-attack article is more than on that Weibo post, especially the signature. Feng Yadong, an idiot, not only stole other peoples paintings, but also his name. Will his parents be angry when they know that his son has changed his name? Feng Yadong is really a wicked person. He is a college student who doesnt have the ability to create something original. He copied other peoples high school students paintings and splashed dirty water. How could there be such a villain! This high school student is too smart. If he hadnt left a signature, he would have been killed by Feng Yadong and brain-dead netizens. I heard that this high school student had the opportunity to study at Wenhua No. 1 High School because he took the No. 1 exam in a poverty-stricken county. If Feng Yadong succeeds in this matter today, he will most likely be driven back and his life will be ruined. I strongly support him to sue Feng Yadong severely! This kind of rubbish is not worthy of continuing to waste national educational resources. I seriously suspect that Feng Yadongs previous awards are also fake. Can anyone help to check it out? How can a scum like Feng Yadong come out of Wenhua Academy of Fine Arts? If hes not expelled, wont he continue to harm others? Netizens who were fooled by jokes were furious. The comment area of ??slander Weibo was full of fierce condemnation and insults. Feng Yadongs Weibo trumper account was picked up and posted in the comment area. Every Weibo post was found by netizens to scold him, and the latest selfie post was scolded particularly horribly. The official WeChat account of the Wenhua Academy of Fine Arts was also affected by the disaster. The usual good night blog comments were full of spits; many netizens asked the school to discipline or even expel Feng Yadong, scaring the schools official Weibo admin to open the comment area overnight. Soon the official Weibo of the CAC Competition issued an announcement, saying that it dismissed the report received earlier and would continue to keep Tao Xis entry. The official Weibo of that unimpressive Golden Cup competition also issued a microblog overnight, stating that it had withdrawn Feng Yadongs winning entry. But a mere withdrawal obviously couldnt calm the anger of netizens. Someone quickly found out that among the many competitions Feng Yadong had participated in over the past two years, several paintings were actually copied from the works of domestic and foreign creators, and most of his seemingly glamorous resumes were actually fake. Some people contacted these creators who had been plagiarized, and one of the painters expressed that they would sue Feng Yadong. It was nearly nine oclock when they finished everything. Qiao Yitang kept brushing the comments of two Weibo posts, laughing out loud from time to time. Tao Xi told Qiao Henian and Zhong Qiusheng about the situation on the Internet. The two old people finally relaxed, and Zhong Qiusheng got up to say goodbye. Tao Xi sent Zhong Qiusheng to the entrance of the courtyard and watched the old man leave by car before he breathed a long sigh of relief, his tense nerves relaxed temporarily for most of the day. He stood quietly alone in the courtyard, stretched his back, and lifted his head to look at the night sky. Just after a winter snow, the sky was not yet clear, and the moon was half-hidden in the slowly flowing thin clouds, soft and hazy. Suddenly he missed Lin Qinhe a little. After a busy day today, he and Lin Qinhe only had time to communicate on WeChat. The phone vibrated, Tao Xi quickly took out the phone and looked at it, it was Lin Qinhes call. Lets talk about it, I can solve it by myself! Tao Xi jumped onto the stone table and sat down, and said with his chin slightly raised, his voice couldnt hide his pride. Lin Qinhes voice was deep and still somewhat serious: This matter has not been completely resolved, I have contacted a lawyer who will help you sue Feng Yadong, and the anonymous slanderer. He paused, and his voice became deeper, The instigator behind, what do you want to do with it? Tao Xi lowered his gaze, and said after being silent: If I want him to be held accountable too, would it be difficult for you? He didnt say who the instigator was, because it was tacit. Feng Yadong was just a cover. Who stole his paintings, who copied them, and who hired Feng Yadong, these questions had long been clear to him. Lin Qinhe said without much hesitation, I said, whatever you want to do, go ahead and do it, dont worry about me being in a difficult situation. Tao Xi remembered that Lin Qinhe had said that he would unconditionally favor him. He raised his head and looked at the furry moon in the sky, shaking his legs, and laughing again: Okay, then you take part in the competition, Ill wait for you to come back. The two talked for a while. Tao Xi seemed to have endless words to say, and when he finally didnt have anything to say, he simply stayed quiet with Lin Qinhe, listening to each others breathing. Qiao Yitang saw a funny comment on Weibo and was eager to share it with Tao Xi. When she ran into the courtyard, she saw Tao Xi sitting on the stone table making a phone call, with one hand behind him supporting the table, dangling his legs like a child, with a calm and pure smile on his face. The kind of dependence that filled the corners of his eyes and brows was completely different from the calmness she saw today. She was suddenly in a trance. She had always took Tao Xi as the role of being funded and protected by Lin Qinhe, and even after todays incident, her first reaction was to think of protecting him like Lin Qinhe, but now she suddenly realized that Tao Xi was never a vulnerable and needed to rely on others to be protected. He could walk here because he was smart and brave enough. After a night of fermentation, the truth has settled. Those things in Wenhua Academy of Fine Arts deleted the anonymous Weibo post in the middle of the night. It also issued a special announcement stating that the platform only accepted submissions, and the content of the submissions did not represent the platforms views. Obviously, in a hurry to clear responsibility. With the forwarding and reporting of several big V bloggers and online media, more and more netizens paid attention to the matter. Many angry netizens flocked to the voting website of the CAC contest and rushed to vote for Tao Xis No. 82 work. Even the website server was overwhelmed for several hours. Tao Xi didnt know about it and didnt care about it. The next morning, he went back to school as usual like all the students. As soon as he entered the classroom, his classmates gathered all of a sudden to celebrate his victory over the wrongdoer,2 and the joy was much more enthusiastic than the parties involved. I told you Xi ge would be fine! Bi Chengfei clasped Tao Xis shoulders and shouted, I was so damned happy to see that reversal last night, I even used my main account to scold that idiot Feng Yadong! Jin Jing also paid attention to the incident for one night and stayed up for a while. At this moment, she smiled at Tao Xi with two dark circles under her eyes: This thing about you is really thrilling. I was so angry too when I saw it at noon yesterday. I was worried that you could not clarify it. Fortunately, you were well prepared and beat him in the face and didnt let the villain succeed! Li Xiaoyuan was the most thoughtful. Apart from joy, he asked Tao Xi with concern: I think the Weibo has been deleted. Will they deny it later? Tao Xi smiled and said, Its okay, the lawyer has already collected the evidence, even if it is deleted, it will be useless. Everyone was relieved and started chattering again about voting for Tao Xi. The class president, Li Xiaoyuan, had already called on the class to vote for Tao Xi in the class group, and the popular student Bi Chengfei had set up a CAC voting team to spread the voting link around among the students in the school. Huang Qing, who had always been alone, had also posted the voting QR code on the glass door of her familys milk tea store. Tao Xi knew that voting had little impact, but he still expressed his sincere gratitude to the classmates. He sent several big red envelopes in a row to the group, all of which lasted for a second. After sending those, he had no money left on his WeChat. In fact, since he was slandered for stealing the earphones, he was wary of many people in the class, but this time the class was on his side from the beginning. It was unexpected and moved him very much. During the break in the morning, Zhou Qiang came to the classroom and found Tao Xi to speak in a quiet corner with no one. Dont worry, the school attaches great importance to this matter. Principal Qiao specifically said in the morning meeting that he will support you in defending your rights. If you need any help, just tell me and I will report it to the school. Zhou Qiang said to Tao Xi. Principal Qiao would of course attach importance to this matter. In addition to Tao Xi being his fathers student, this matter had too much influence and too much trouble. If Tao Xis evidence was not conclusive enough to reverse the matter, then the reputation of Wenhua No. 1 High School would be affected. Tao Xis identity was also implicated in the remote live broadcast project that the government had just approved. No school leader wanted to stain this project. In addition, this matter was also very suspicious. How could the painting from Wenhua No. 1 High School student be plagiarized by students from an unrelated university in Wenhua Academy of Fine Arts? Who stole Tao Xis paintings? As long as you think deeply about these problems, you would notice something was wrong. Tao Xi, remember carefully, who did you come into contact with when you were painting? Have you ever painted outside of school? Zhou Qiang asked the question that both he and the school leaders had. Tao Xi looked up at Zhou Qiang and said, I have only painted in the dormitory, and the painting has always been in the dormitory. Only in the dormitory? Zhou Qiang had a guess in his mind. He was the one who took Tao Xi during the dormitory check-in. Worried that Tao Xi did not fit in, he paid special attention to this matter. He remembered that there were two roommates, a Class 2 student and an art class student. At first glance, it might seem that they were more likely to be students in the art class. Seeming to see his suspicions, Tao Xi said to him, It wont be Pan Yan. Although he also studies painting, he has a good relationship with me. Zhou Qiang immediately understood that Tao Xi actually had a suspect. He nodded his head seriously and said: You can rest assured that if its the student in our school that stole your painting in the dormitory, the school will never tolerate him. I will go back and talk to the principal and start investigating this matter immediately. Tao Xi thanked Zhou Qiang and soon the class bell rang. He walked toward the classroom along the stream of people, and glanced into the door as he passed the second class classroom. Xu Ziqi sat in the first row, and when he met his gaze, his complexion suddenly turned pale and his eyes even frightened. Tao Xi raised the corner of his mouth and smiled at Xu Ziqi, then averted his gaze and continued to walk towards the first classroom. a slang that means a solid evidence or to have a solid evidence against someone lit: ԩѩ C redress an injustice and get a clean slate/injustice undone CH 57 Disputes on the Internet did not stop there. At nine oclock in the morning, the official WeChat account of the Wenhua Academy of Fine Arts also issued a statement saying that the school had convened an urgent meeting and was investigating the Feng Yadong issue. The lawyer appointed by Lin Qinhe to help Tao Xi also posted a letter to Feng Yadong on Weibo, stating that he would help the client to sue. The matter developed in a direction that was initially unexpected and expanded. Perhaps due to the pressure of the school and the lawsuit, at ten oclock in the morning, Feng Yadongs Weibo trumpet, who was overwhelmed by netizens, finally sent a Weibo response. He admitted in the Weibo post that the painting was not his own original, but there was someone else who gave him the painting and asked him to submit it for the competition. He was deceived by others and the person who anonymously submitted the article to smear the plagiarism was not him. Throughout Weibo, he tried to clean himself up, and finally @ a Weibo account, suggesting that this was the person behind the scenes. Netizens clicked on this Weibo account and found that it was a verified account, with a profile of the vice president of the Wenhua City Qinghua Painting Association. Xi ge, do you know this person named Guan Fanyun? Bi Chengfei had endured the desire to surf the Internet all morning, and when he finally had time to gossip during the lunch break, he saw that some netizens had already picked up this Weibo full of selfies belonging to a woman named Guan Fanyun. Tao Xi also swiped his phone, but did not have the leisure to gossip. Instead, he anxiously waited for Lin Qinhes reply. The national mathematics competition exam took place in the morning. At this time, it should have just ended. He looked at the WeChat dialog box and said absently: I know, I am also in this club. Bi Chengfei sketched out a story in his mind, in which a vice president was jealous of a gifted member and thus slandered and framed him. He continued scrolling Weibo, and after a while, he opened his mouth suddenly: I saw someone pick it up. Guan Fanyun is the girlfriend of the chairman of Mingwei Technology! Guan Fanyuns Weibo was full of self-portraits and PDAs. Netizens who were eager to eat melons picked out her boyfriends. Many people speculated that Guan Fanyun was not a girlfriend but a mistress based on her age. Mingwei Technology? Tao Xi didnt react. You dont know, Mingwei Technology is a very large medical company, and the chairman is Bi Chengfei covered his mouth and leaned towards Tao Xi in a low voice, The next door Class 2 Yang Duoles father. Tao Xi said Oh without any response. He continued to look at Lin Qinhes WeChat box. The interface suddenly jumped into an incoming call reminder. He jolted, got up from his seat with his mobile phone and rushed to the hallway outside the classroom. Have you finished the exam? It seemed to be a little noisy over Lin Qinhes side, he let out an en without saying how well he did in the test. Instead, he said to him: I will go back to Wenhua City in the afternoon. I will pick you up from school in the evening. Tao Xi was stunned and asked, Dont you have an interview in Beijing this afternoon? Lin Qinhes schedule for Beijing was very full this time. In addition to the competition in the morning, there would be two interviews with American professors in the afternoon. The plan was to return tomorrow. I moved the interview to a later date. Tao Xi felt that something was wrong, Lin Qinhe was not someone who casually disrupted plans like this. He thought about it and said, Is there anything wrong with you coming back in a hurry? If its about me, you really dont have to worry about it, Ive already taken care of it. Lin Qinhe seemed to have walked to a quieter place, his voice became clearer and deeper: Tao Xi, I want to take you to see your grandpa and grandma tomorrow morning. Tao Xi took a deep breath. His fingers unconsciously gripped the phone and he asked softly: Why? Didnt we say we will go on Saturday? When he thought of that scene, he still couldnt help feeling nervous. Lin Qinhe was silent for a while and only said, I dont want anything else to happen. Tao Xi heard a bit of self-blame in Lin Qinhes voice. He bit his lower lip. After hesitating for a while, he replied, Okay, Ill listen to you. After hanging up the phone, he opened Weibo and searched Guan Fanyuns Weibo account to find that the Weibo content had been cleared and the ID became a string of garbled codes. Feng Yadongs revelation about Guan Fanyun was within his expectation, but he was more curious about what Guan Fanyun would do. Guan Fanyun must have slandered him for plagiarism for the purpose of pleasing Yang Duole. Now that the situation had developed to this point, there was no more room to turn back. Would she cover up Yang Zhengmings son and block all this for him? And Xu Ziqi, who had always been uncomfortable with him and had been trying hard to get in line with Yang Duole, would he deny stealing his painting and hide it for Yang Duole when confronted by the school leaders? Tao Xi put the phone back into her pocket. After returning to the classroom, he walked to the corridor again. Grabbing a boy who was about to enter Class 2, he handed him a folded note and said, Can you give it to Xu Ziqi in your class for me? The boy agreed and quickly went into the classroom. Tao Xi leaned on the railing of the corridor, lowered his head and scrolled Weibo. Not long after, Xu Ziqi walked out, glanced at him stiffly, and then looked around. Seeing no one passing by, he said with a sullen expression: What do you mean? Tao Xis gaze fell on Xu Ziqis tightly clenched fingers. Without saying anything, he turned and walked into an empty classroom at the end of the corridor. Xu Ziqi hesitated behind him for a while and followed slowly. The empty classroom had few tables and chairs, and a broken chair with a broken leg was at the edge of the wall. Tao Xi looked at the chair, and after Xu Ziqi closed the door nervously, he said in a low tone. Xu Ziqi, I remember I told you a long time ago not to touch my things casually. Xu Ziqi saw the chair and obviously remembered something. He subconsciously took two steps back and stared at him angrily, Who touched your things? You do not just slander people! Tao Xi took a step closer, staring at Xu Ziqis dodging eyes and said, You may not know that I have a bad habit. As long as it is what I put, how it is placed and where it is, I can remember it clearly. Xu Ziqi stood there, his lips pressed tightly. After a moment of silence, he turned his face sideways and said, I dont know what you are talking about. Then I will help you remember. Tao Xi put his hand in his pocket and held the phone. Tilting his head as if he was thinking, he continued, On December 17, Pan Yan took a day off to go back, I went back to my dorm room late, and you were the only one in the dorm room, right? Xu Ziqis face froze for a moment, this was the date written in the note. his heart was panicking like a drum roll, but he tried his best to maintain his composure: What does this mean? Pan Yan is still often alone in the dormitory? Tao Xi smiled softly and said calmly, Didnt you notice? Every time I finish painting, I cover the easel with a white cloth, but that day when I went back, I found that the cloth had been moved. Pan Yan was not there, so who do you think moved it? Xu Ziqi lowered his gaze suddenly, the emotions in his eyes were fierce, and after a while he calmed down again, snickering, Can this be considered evidence? Tao Xi didnt answer the conversation anymore, but suddenly asked, You havent been able to contact Yang Duole, right? Xu Ziqi looked gloomy and didnt say a word. Since things were reversed last night, he panicked and sent a WeChat message to Yang Duole and even made a phone call, but there was no response. Today, Yang Duole didnt come to school directly, and he will go to the Student Affairs Office later to accept the inquiry from Director Feng. Tao Xi came closer, and said in a slow tone: Xu Ziqi, I know that Yang Duole asked you to do this. In addition to you, there is also his fathers girlfriend. Now she has been exposed by Feng Yadong. Dont you think she will give you up for Yang Duole? Xu Ziqis fist on the leg side suddenly clenched, and his expression remained silent. This matter has become a big deal, the school is also investigating. Do you think it can still be hidden? Tao Xis gaze fell on Xu Ziqis pale face, his voice was cold, Finally finding out that its you who provided them with my paintings, what do you think the school will do? Is it a disciplinary action, or a withdrawal from school? Xu Ziqis eyes trembled violently, he swallowed his throat and quickly retorted: I didnt know they would do that with your paintings! Tao Xi squeezed the phone with his hand in his pocket, and asked with distrust: You really dont know? Xu Ziqi turned red and argued quickly, I just mentioned to Yang Duole that you were going to participate in the CAC. He said he wanted to see how your paintings were, and asked me to take a picture to show him, so I agreed, I really didnt know he would do that. Tao Xi laughed coldly in his heart, knowing that Xu Ziqi was clearing himself. He said nothing more and turned to leave, but Xu Ziqi caught up and grabbed his arm, saying in a pleading tone, Tao Xi, I really cant leave Wenhua No.1 High School, my parents would go crazy if they knew! Tao Xi stopped in his tracks, broke away Xu Ziqis hand and looked at him coldly, saying, When you plan to slander me, why dont you think about the fact that I cant leave Wenhua No.1 High School either? Xu Ziqi opened his pale lips but did not say anything. In the afternoon, Tao Xi followed the others to class as usual, until after five oclock, just after an English class, Zhou Qiang came in through the back door and asked him to go out. Tao Xi followed Zhou Qiang outside the classroom, Zhou Qiang led him in the direction of the office building while saying: Director Peng of the Political Education Department looked for Xu Ziqi at noon, his words were not much different from the recording you gave me, then Director Peng went to Yang Duole, but Yang Duole was not at school and took a leave of absence last night. Tao Xi smiled in his heart. At this time, would Yang Duole only hide in cowardice? Zhou Qiang didnt expect that this matter would involve Yang Duole from Class 2 and continued with a headache: Director Peng had to contact Yang Duoles parents. Now they are here and they are in the meeting room Before he finished speaking, he found Tao Xi suddenly stopped in his tracks, tightly frowned, the bottom of his eyes revealed a nervous and anxious look. Thinking that Tao Xi was afraid of facing his parents, Zhou Qiang calmed him down: Dont be nervous, Yang Duole made a mistake in this matter. His parents must have come to talk to you properly and apologize to you. They will not make things difficult for you. Tao Xi took a deep breath and nodded slowly. When Yang Zhengming rushed to Wenhua No. 1 High School in the afternoon, Luo Zhengyin and the two elders of the Fang family hadnt arrived yet. Director Peng welcomed and took him into a conference room. He couldnt hold back lighting a cigarette. His face, which was always gentle and warm, had a layer of heavy frost. Guan Fanyun called him at noon today, and knowing that she had been exposed, she told him about the incidentNot knowing what kind of deep hatred he had with the student named Tao Xi, gave her the photo of the painting Tao Xi had submitted to CAC. He asked her to copy the painting, and found a college student with little background, and hired him to submit the copy of the painting to the Golden Cup competition in his own name. The purpose of this was obvious. Not knowing what was wrong with his son, he wanted to ruin a classmates competition through slander and plagiarism. More deeply, he wanted to ruin the students future in artistic creation Zhengming, I have no grudge against that Tao Xi. Its also because of your son that I did this, you cant just ignore it! Now others are going to sue, I cant take this all down for your son, can you think of something? At that time, Yang Zhengming listened to the forehead veins jumping and forced himself to calm down before he interrupted Guan Fanyuns noisy crying, telling her to clear all the content of the social media platform first, and not to post any response on it. He was incredibly angry and furious at Yang Duoles behavior, wanting to drag the kid back and beat him up immediately, and he didnt expect Guan Fanyun to let Yang Duole do what he wanted! In the end, Yang Zhengming managed to calm down and went to the internet to quickly understand the situation, knowing that the matter had already gone too far to be solved by suppressing Feng Yadong. In any case, he planned to go to the school to ask Yang Duole to ask clearly, but soon he received a phone call from Yang Duoles head teacher. He told him about Yang Duole in a gentle tone and asked him to take Yang Duole to the school. Only then did he know that Yang Duole didnt go to school at all, so he had to call Luo Zhengyin, who had barely contacted him. Luo Zhengyin said that Yang Duole was in a bad mood and went to a friends house. Yang Zhengming could not hold back his anger. He had always been dissatisfied with the two elders of the Fang family and Luo Zhengyin for pampering Yang Duole too much. Because of his willfulness, he made a big mistake today, so he couldnt help but tell Luo Zhengyin about the good things Yang Duole had done. Unexpectedly, Luo Zhengyin happened to be visiting the two old people at Fangs house. The two elders knew about this. The three were shocked and anxious, and they didnt believe that Yang Duole did it. The door of the conference room was pushed open. Yang Zhengming saw Luo Zhengyin helping the two old men, Fang Zuqing and Ye Yurong, come in, but did not see Yang Duole and asked in a deep voice: Where is Yang Duole? Why dont you bring him here? Luo Zhengyin said with a tired expression, I drove to Leles friends house to pick him up and asked him about it, but Lele didnt admit it and didnt want to come to school with me, so I didnt bring him here. At that time, she was afraid of hurting Yang Duole, so she asked carefully and euphemistically, but Yang Duole reacted fiercely, crying and denying it. She was so distressed that she didnt dare to ask any more, and then persuaded Yang Duole to go to school to explain, but Yang Duole never agreed, and refused to leave his friends house. She had to give up and picked up the two old people who insisted on going to school. Yang Zhengming only felt that these two people were ridiculous. When he was just about to say something, heard Fang Zuqing squeezed the crutches heavily, his already serious face was now green, and he sternly questioned him: Did your lover do a good thing?! How many times have I told you, dont let her provoke Lele! Ye Yurong, his wife on the side, was also anxious and angry, but worried about the old mans body, so she softly persuaded: Sit down first and ask the school teacher if there is any misunderstanding. I believe Lele is a good boy and would never do such a thing. Luo Zhengyin helped Fang Zuqing sit on the sofa, smoothed the old mans breath, and agreed: Lele also said he didnt do it, so there might really be some kind of misunderstanding. Ever since she answered Yang Zhengmings call, she had been restless. Thinking of Yang Duoles faults during this time and his hostility towards Tao Xi, she was actually a little skeptical, but Yang Duoles denial made her dispel her doubts. She didnt believe that the child she raised would do such a thing. Yang Zhengming, who had been silent for a long time, put out his cigarette and reached out to pinch his tightly knitted brow, knowing that these three simply did not believe it. But he knew in his heart that, although Guan Fanyun was stupid, she would not fool him on this matter. Forget it, wait until Director Peng comes over. Director Peng soon entered the meeting room, greeted the four parents politely, and poured water for each of them. Fang Zuqing couldnt help asking him the ins and outs of the matter, so Director Peng calmly described in detail how Tao Xis CAC painting was slandered as plagiarism to its final reversal. But what does this have to do with my grandson? Fang Zuqing asked with a stern face; he didnt know this student named Tao Xi at all, and he was old so he didnt know much about things on the internet. Director Peng had dealt with many student disputes, and knew that parents would take sides with their own children, so he wasnt angry when he heard this. He told them about Xu Ziqi admitting that it was Yang Duole who asked him to secretly photograph Tao Xis paintings, and Feng Yadong said that he was instigated by Guan Fanyun. Fang Zuqing smiled and fell silent, his withered right hand clutching the cane in his hand, Ye Yurong sighed lightly and did not speak. Luo Zhengyin frowned when he heard the name Guan Fanyun. She glanced at Yang Zhengming with an unsuspecting expression and asked in a cold voice, Could it be that Guan Fanyun asked Lele to do it? Yang Zhengming didnt expect Luo Zhengyin to turn a blind eye,1 his tone was impatient: Fanyun doesnt know Tao Xi very well, why would she harm him for nothing? She showed me the chat records with Lele, and it was indeed Lele who asked her to do it. He held back and didnt tell them what Guan Fanyun said about Yang Duole asking her to borrow money and asking her to help teach Tao Xi a lesson at a classmates birthday party, for fear that the old man wouldnt be able to bear hearing it. Perhaps from these words he understood that Yang Zhengming was defending Guan Fanyun, Fang Zuqing said angrily at Yang Zhengming: Look what kind of woman you found, if not for her ideas on the side, can Lele understand these means?! Yang Zhengming supported his forehead irritably. Over the years, it was difficult for him and Fang Zuqing to say a few words peacefully. The old mans resentment against him was not for a day or two. He silently did not answer the words and let the old man get angry. Luo Zhengyin was still in disbelief. She was startled and suspicious for a while, and seemed to have been hit hard, muttering: How can Lele Ye Yurongs expression was solemn, and her heart turned upside down. Knowing that Luo Zhengyin couldnt stand it, she took her hand and sighed gently: The kid was confused and did something wrong. We as adults are also wrong, we didnt teach him well. Director Peng, what do you think is better to deal with this matter? Director Peng had been in an awkward situation. Seeing that someone finally noticed him, he said hurriedly: This matter is a bit serious now. The follow-up process has to be taken care of by the school leaders. My personal suggestion is to make Yang Duole apologize to Tao Xi, and then you can see if you can discuss it with Tao Xi and see what he says. Yang Zhengming understood the meaning of Director Pengs words and after thinking for a while asked, Dont you need to invite Tao Xis parents over as well? Maybe its more appropriate for us parents to talk together. Fang Zuqing agreed with Yang Zhengming in a rare moment: Yes, children sometimes cant make up their minds. Director Peng replied: Tao Xi is a student from our school and Qingshui Countys remote live broadcast project. The parents are not here, nor do we have their contact information. Luo Zhengyin returned to her senses, a sad cloud covering her face. She nodded and said: I know Tao Xi, he is indeed from Qingshui County. The other three fell silent, because Qingshui County was a place they did not want to recall. They did not expect that the children involved in Yang Duoles incident were actually from Qingshui County. In the end it was Yang Zhengming who said to Director Peng: Thank you, well discuss it first and then talk to you. Okay. If you want to see Tao Xi, I can bring him over. Director Peng said goodbye and walked out. He closed the door of the meeting room and shook his head outside the door when he heard the faint quarrel coming from inside. Tao Xi was led by Zhou Qiang to the door of the conference room, and the hands that fell on the side of his legs were clenched together until the joints were white. He already knew from Zhou Qiang that the parents who came this time included his father, grandfather and grandmother, and Lin Qinhes mother. Originally, he was ready to visit his grandparents with Lin Qinhe tomorrow, but how could he have expected to meet his relatives on such an occasion first? Tao Xi stood up straighter and cleared his throat as Zhou Qiang knocked on the conference room door, each knock knocking heavily on his heart. Soon there were footsteps coming from inside, followed by the door being opened. Tao Xi saw Yang Zhengming gave him a kind smile on his tired-looking face and said: Tao Xi, come in. Ĵ (xn cn jio xng ): Refers to a person who has done wrong or bad things and still has the mentality of not being discovered, not punished, or expecting no consequences CH 58 Tao Xi followed Yang Zhengming into the conference room, and Director Peng, who was chatting with Fang Zuqing, stood up and beckoned to Tao Xi, Tao Xi, come and sit down. The first thing Tao Xi saw was the two old people sitting on the sofa. He stood by the door at a loss, bent down lightly and politely called out Hello grandpa and grandma to the two old people, and then greeted Luo Zhengyin and Director Peng respectively. Fang Zuqing stood up with the help of Luo Zhengyin, put on his glasses, and was stunned for a moment when he saw Tao Xis face. He exchanged a glance with his wife Ye Yurong, both saw a little shock in each others eyes. Luo Zhengyin, who had already met Tao Xi several times, reduced the sadness on her face and showed a little smile to Tao Xi. Tao Xi cautiously walked to the empty seat next to Director Peng and sat down. Director Peng patted him on the shoulder and introduced him: Tao Xi, these are Yang Duoles grandparents, they came here today to talk to you about your competition. Director Peng had handled many disputes between students and often welcomed parents, so he said this in an extremely subtle way, taking care of the face of the parents present. Tao Xi pursed his lower lip when he heard these words. He put his hands on his legs properly, and quietly raised his eyes to look at the two old people sitting opposite, his eyelashes trembling with nervousness. This was the first time he saw his grandpa and grandma in front of him. The expressions of the two old people showed a little tiredness, Fang Zuqings expression was solemn and silent, and the corners of Ye Yurongs eyes were a little red, as if she was sad. After Yang Zhengming entered the door, he went to the water dispenser to pour a glass of water. At this time, he walked over with the water glass. Ye Yurong took the initiative to take the glass of water from Yang Zhengmings hand and handed it to Tao Xi. Tao Xi stood up hurriedly and saw the hands covered with brown spots were a bit trembling. He respectfully took the cup from Ye Yurong with both hands and heard his grandmother kindly say to him: Child, drink some water first. He didnt know why. Hearing this child, he lowered his eyes hastily, said thank you in a low voice, then sat back on the chair with the water glass in both hands, and drank slowly with his head down. They were a little embarrassed to speak directly about Yang Duole. Ye Yurong saw the nervousness of the child in front of her and asked Tao Xi in a warm voice: I heard that you transferred from the school in Qingshui County? Tao Xi looked up at Ye Yurong, nodded and said, I came from Qingshui County No. 1 High School. Director Peng on the side smiled and said, Tao Xi is ranked first in Qingshui County, so he was rewarded to come here to study for a year, his grades here are also very good. Ye Yurong smiled kindly and praised, A good child who is smart and hardworking. Tao Xis eyes suddenly widened at her words. Under the leadership of Director Peng, the atmosphere in the conference room eased a lot, but the business still had to be discussed. Yang Zhengming considered it for a while meeting and said sincerely to Tao Xi: Tao Xi, we came here this time mainly to apologize to you. I didnt expect Yang Duole to do something like this. If he had come today, I would definitely let him apologize to you now. With a sad expression on Ye Yurongs face, she said to Tao Xi: Our child did something wrong. We parents also did not educate him well, so we have to apologize to you. Tao Xis back slowly shrank, his eyes dropped into the water glass in his hand, he didnt speak. Seeing that Tao Xi had been silent, Director Peng had no choice but to say with a dry smile: When Yang Duole comes to school tomorrow, let him apologize to Tao Xi properly. How deep of a hatred can children have, just untie the knot. He just finished speaking when he saw Tao Xi raise his head suddenly and said, I will not accept Yang Duoles apology. The tone was determined, and there was a stubborn intent in his eyes, without the slightest room for concession. The atmosphere in the conference room instantly stagnated. The parents looked at each other, Director Peng scratched his hair in embarrassment. He had some personal friendships with Professor Fang. This time he wanted to help the parents to resolve the dispute privately, but now he found it a bit tricky. Fang Zuqing, who has not spoken all the time, frowned at the words and said solemnly to Tao Xi: Not only are we apologizing, we will try our best to make up for your loss on behalf of Lele; we will compensate you, as long as you stop pursuing this matter. They discussed for a long time before and knew that the key to the matter lies in Tao Xi. As long as the child was no longer pursuing the matter, then what Yang Duole did would not be known to everyone, and the school could also impose a lighter punishment on Yang Duole on the grounds of Tao Xis understanding. Although they were angry with their child, they still couldnt sit back and watch Yang Duole be drawn into the whirlpool. Ye Yurong felt that Fang Zuqings tone was a bit too serious. She was afraid of frightening Tao Xi, so she said softly to Tao Xi: Child, its not easy for you to come from Qingshui County. As a compensation, we can fund you to continue studying in Wenhua No. 1 High School until you finish high school. We will also pay you the expenses after you enter the university until you graduate from university. Do you think this is okay? Tao Xi heard the child from her grandmother again, only to feel stagnant breathing and pain in his chest. He opened his mouth to say something, but his throat seemed to be blocked by something rough, no sound could come out. When several parents saw Tao Xi lowered his head and did not speak, they thought he was hesitating. Director Peng actually thought this compensation was very good. After all, Tao Xis family was poor, and it was also a problem to go to university in the future. There was no need to let go of such a good opportunity for a while. He whispered to Tao Xi: Tao Xi, would you like to consider it? Tao Xi shook his head, and when he spoke again, his voice was hoarse: I dont want to accept it. Ye Yurong didnt expect this child to be so stubborn, so she sighed softly and looked at Yang Zhengming, who had been holding his forehead without speaking. Seeing that he didnt respond, she looked at Luo Zhengyin helplessly, thinking that Luo Zhengyin knew Tao Xi, so maybe her words would work better. Luo Zhengyin sat closer to Tao Xi and persuaded him in a soft tone: Tao Xi, dont you like to paint and want to apply to a foreign art school? We can also pay for you to study abroad, you and Qinhe are so close, so you can go to America together, isnt it good? Tao Xi heard the word Qinhe in his blurred vision, was silent, but still shook his head stubbornly. Fang Zuqing was stubborn all his life, and his daughter was also stubborn. He looked at the child in front of him, who seemed to be even more stubborn than he was, and lessened the seriousness on his face and said to Tao Xi in a slower tone. Child, I can understand your anger. To be honest, I still feel angry and dont want to believe that my grandson would do such a ridiculous thing. He began to cough heavily in the middle of his sentence, and Tao Xi couldnt help but raise his eyes to look over. Ye Yurong hurriedly handed the water to his husband. Fang Zuqing took a few sips of water before he calmed down his cough. He looked at Tao Xi, and a bit of pain appeared in his already muddy eyes, as he said bitterly: His mother left early and he grew up weak and sick, so we all spoiled him, and were reluctant to let him suffer so he has developed an arrogant and self-willed character. Now he has made a mistake and done something wrong. We parents have also made a mistake. I want to apologize to you and really want to compensate you. Tao Xi lowered his head, swallowed hard on his dry throat, grabbed his fingers into his palm, and listened to Fang Zuqing continuing to speak. Everyone makes mistakes. Children will make mistakes and adults will too. They have to pay for their mistakes. I once paid an irreparable price for a mistake. Now that I am old and there are not many days left, I cant bear to watch my only child pay too much for the mistakes. As if recalling something from the past, Fang Zuqings dim eyes were filled with tears of grief. Ye Yurong on the side couldnt help but look away, taking out a handkerchief to wipe the corners of her moist eyes. Fang Zuqing stood up tremblingly from the sofa. The old professor who had almost never begged anyone, crouched down. Stretching out his trembling hand, he handed a piece of paper to Tao Xi and pleaded: Child, it is our familys child who has wronged you. We come to pay for him, you can ask for whatever you want, as long as I, an old man, can do it, I will do my best to accomplish it. Tao Xis vision had been completely blurred, he could not see what was on that piece of paper, he could only see the old hands that were constantly trembling. Once he had longed for countless times, longed to be like his sister Tao Le. After making mistakes, after being wronged, there would always be grandparents who could favor him and protect him. They would use those old but strong hands to protect him in their arms, to shield him from all the blame and scolding, telling him, child do not be afraid, come here to grandparents. Now he stretched out his hands and took the paper from his grandfathers hand. He lowered his head and blinked hard, and the blurred line of sight finally became clear. Three words were printed in the center of the first row of that piece of paper: Letter of Understanding. It clearly displayed the compensation they promised, and each of them was enough to make a person born in poverty move. He could even continue to write his own requirements below. What a generous compensation, as long as he signed it. The meeting room fell into silence again, but several adults finally realized that there was something wrong with the child. His head hung very low, shrinking himself together, his shoulders trembled slightly and his fingers clutched the Letter of Understanding tightly. Only the extremely low choking that was suppressed could be heard, like the wailing of an abandoned cub. They did not expect such a reaction from Tao Xi, nor could they understand it. From an adults perspective, accepting these generous compensations was the most sensible choice. Ye Yurong frowned and asked with concern: My child, whats the matter? Luo Zhengyin handed Tao Xi a tissue, but Tao Xi didnt take it. She didnt know what Tao Xi was upset about and could only tentatively suggest, Why dont you discuss it with your family, call your mom and dad to ask? My mom and dad. I Tao Xi finally opened his lips, as if he wanted to say something, but somehow couldnt say it. At this moment, the door of the conference room was suddenly opened, and everyone couldnt help but look over to see a tall young man walking in quickly with a frosty face. His gaze fell straight on the child who was surrounded in the center and quickly walked to his side. Qinhe? Luo Zhengyin stood up in surprise, Arent you still in Beijing? Lin Qinhe didnt answer. He saw the piece of paper in Tao Xis hand, there were teardrops that had not yet dried up, impregnating the words Letter of Understanding with a distorted ink. At that moment, everyone in the room clearly felt deep anger from this young man. His eyes darkened suddenly, and he didnt say anything. He just took the Letter of Understanding from Tao Xis hand, and the bony hand instantly tore the paper. Fang Zuqings face was ugly as he stared at the child he watched growing up. There was anger in his voice: Qinhe, what are you doing?! Lin Qinhes stern face was covered with deep ice. He almost never disobeyed these elders. At this moment, he looked at them with heavy eyes, sweeping past their surprised and puzzled faces one by one, his tone was cold to the extreme: Do you know what you are doing? Luo Zhengyin had never seen Lin Qinhe get so angry before, so she was dumbfounded and speechless. Yang Zhengming stood up, this was his sons matter after all, he explained to Lin Qinhe, We want to talk to Tao Xi about what Lele did wrong, and see if we can negotiate a solution. They just didnt expect that Tao Xi would react so fiercely. Negotiate a solution? Lin Qinhe glanced at the torn Letter of Understanding on the ground, looked at them sarcastically, and questioned: If it is your own child who is framed and slandered by others, and almost bears the charge of plagiarism for a lifetime, and even the future is ruined, would you choose to forgive that person? Several adults fell silent when they heard the words. Yang Zhengming frowned; this was the reason why he had always been unable to talk to Tao Xi. He knew very well that what Yang Duole did could almost ruin a persons life, let alone a child with no background. Tao Xi casually wiped his face and stood up, looked at Lin Qinhe and shook his head. Lin Qinhe held Tao Xis hand, pulled him behind him and said in a cold voice to the silent crowd. Tao Xi does not need your compensation, nor does he need relatives like you. This sentence was like a boulder falling into the waves. Several adults looked at Lin Qinhe blankly, their expressions stagnant, as if they hadnt heard these words clearly, they didnt even react when they saw Lin Qinhe taking Tao Xi out. Lin Qinhe held Tao Xis hand and led him out of this airtight conference room, with the door closed behind him. Su Yun, who was standing outside the door waiting, saw them coming out, and asked Lin Qinhe: Do you want to tell them now? Lin Qinhe nodded. Tao Xi raised his head suddenly, looking at Lin Qinhe with moist and reddish eyes. Lin Qinhe gently wiped away the tears that were not dry on his face with his thumb, and then held his hand again with some strength and said to him: Dont be afraid, lets go home now. Tao Xi nodded and followed Lin Qinhe far away from this conference room. Su Yun watched them go far away before opening the door of the conference room again. Luo Zhengyin who had recovered from the panic saw Su Yun asked in a daze, Secretary Su, why are you here? Su Yun smiled at Luo Zhengyin and said, Mrs. Luo, Qinhe asks me to tell you something. Director Peng, who had been so embarrassed that he didnt know what to do, knew that they must have something important, so he stood up and bid farewell to the crowd and left the conference room. Yang Zhengming had a faint premonition in his heart. Lin Qinhes words kept repeating in his mind. He couldnt help but walked a few steps towards Su Yun and asked quickly: What exactly did Qinhe mean by what he said just now? He was so flustered that he didnt realize Su Yun hadnt heard Lin Qinhes words. Su Yun took a look at several people in the room with different looks, and was a little worried about whether they could accept it, especially since there were two elderly people who were very old. You will know soon. She took out a laptop from her briefcase as the crowd stared in confusion, turned the screen in the conference room on, connected it and clicked on a video. In the clear picture on the screen, a middle-aged woman in a medical suit was sitting in a hospital bed. The woman had a pale yellow face, her entire face was a little abnormally swollen, and layers of sadness were sandwiched between the corners of her wrinkled eyes.. For Yang Zhengming and Fangs elders, this was an old friend. But at this moment, none of them could recognize it. After all, seventeen years had passed, and the woman who they had only met once was almost completely changed. It was not until the video began, this woman with a familiar and unfamiliar heavy accent, full of regret , saying sorry over and over again. Yang Zhengmings eyes trembled, he looked at Fang Zuqing and Ye Yurong sitting aside in panic, and saw that they also looked heavy, as if they remembered something. Only Luo Zhengyin looked anxious and at a loss, and she couldnt help but ask: This one is? But no one answered her. They all looked at the screen with heavy expressions and suspicion so she could only continue to watch the video. At the end, she heard a name from this womans mouth that was imprinted into her life: Fang Sui. Then a cruel truth stumbled out of the womans mouth without any logic, telling them how the two children were born on the same day seventeen years ago on a snowy winter night, and how their fates were exchanged at her whim. Luo Zhengyins cochlea rumbled and her mind went blank, watching the woman lower her head and cover her face in painful tears halfway through her speech, but she still didnt dare to believe what she had just heard. She stared at the two old men with a stiff gaze, and grabbed Ye Yurongs hand next to her empty and helplessly. She opened her mouth, eagerly wanting to seek some answer, but found that Ye Yurongs hands were terribly cold, shaking uncontrollably like her, while Fang Zuqings pupils were staring at the woman on the screen, his face showing a strange blue and purple color as his flesh and skin aged. They looked shocked, but no one spoke. She, is what she said true? Luo Zhengyin mumbled in a panic, the woman on the screen was still crying in pain, and every sound made her heart panic. She hysterically asked herself: Lele isnt Lele A Suis child? Then, where is A Suis child? Where is he? But no one answered her. Yang Zhengming lowered his head and buried his face in his palms. The joints of his hands were protruding, and the blue veins on the back of his hands were jumping suddenly, pressing out a sigh from his chest. At this point the womans painful sobs in the video finally gradually stopped, her eyes looked at the camera with no energy, and said in a hoarse voice. I named the child I left behind, Tao Xi. These words exploded like a thunderbolt in the conference room. Zuqing! Ye Yurong cried out, only grabbing a piece of her coat, watching her old companion fall to the ground like an old tree broken by a thunderstorm on a typhoon day. Yang Zhengming and Su Yun rushed over to pick up the old man, holding him up and rushing towards the door. Luo Zhengyin was stunned, her arms and legs were limp, she propped herself up on the armrest of the sofa and used her strength to stand up, following the panicked footsteps in hindsight. T/N: I hate everyone in this, but also for once, I actually liked Yang Zhengming a little bit, at least here, he was the most rational as compared to the Fang grandparents and Luo Zhengyin. Also, theres another update tomorrow! CH 59 Tao Xi was taken out of the school gate by Lin Qinhe, but did not go back to where they lived, instead they went to a wonton stall in the old city. Because Wenhua University was nearby, there were many college students coming and going in the old streets and alleys, and the night market had set up stalls on the roadside and the cold air was filled with the aroma of cumin from the barbecue stalls. Under the red plastic canopy with the signboard of Old Sun Wonton, an old man with white hair was making wontons in front of a large pot with white steam rolling around. Seeing Lin Qinhe bring a boy in, he stopped his hand and smiled and asked: Are you skipping class again? I didnt skip class, I had the night off. Lin Qinhe said, letting Tao Xi sit at the table in the corner sheltered from the wind, and then washed disposable chopsticks with boiling water. Its very clean, what else to wash? The old man couldnt help but scold Lin Qinhe when he saw how carefully he washed them. Tao Xi sat on a plastic stool, curiously watching them talking. He didnt expect Lin Qinhe would come to this kind of market in the corner of the streets and was even very familiar with the old man called Old Sun. Old Sun noticed Tao Xis sight and smiled kindly at him. After looking at him carefully, he said something to Lin Qinhe to which Lin Qinhe smiled lightly and replied. Not long after, Lin Qinhe placed a bowl full of wontons in front of him and said, The wontons here are quite delicious, try it. Tao Xi held the bowl and smelled it, the fresh fragrance filled his nose instantly. He buried himself in several mouthfuls with the spoon handed to him by Lin Qinhe. It was really delicious, the soup was delicious, and the whole stomach warmed up warmly. He asked Lin Qinhe, who was sitting next to him, Do you come here often? Lin Qinhe was also eating a bowl of wontons and was about to answer when he heard Old Sun, who was serving the wontons, laughingly said, He came here when he ran away from home at the age of six or seven! Tao Xi suddenly looked at Lin Qinhe in astonishment: Run away from home? And even at such a young age. Lin Qinhe looked a little unnatural and said: I just walked from home to here, ate a bowl of wontons and then went back. It doesnt count as running away from home. Old Sun smiled and said, I invited him to eat that bowl of wontons, and he told me that he would definitely repay me later. Tao Xi couldnt help laughing. Under the dangling incandescent lamp, a smile flickered in his dark eyes. He asked Lin Qinhe: Why did you run away from home at that time? Lin Qinhe said indifferently: I dont remember much, maybe I had a fight with my family. Hearing what Lin Qinhe said, Old Sun only smiled and shook his head. In the canopy, several college students soon came in, and the old man was busy greeting the business. The cold wind outside the plastic film roared, but the canopy was warm in the room filled with water vapor. So you went back on your own? Or did the family find you? Tao Xi asked curiously. Lin Qinhe thought for a moment and said, My family took me back. Tao Xi propped his chin with one hand, recalling: Actually, I also ran away from home, forgot what happened. I walked to the next mountain, but I ran back by myself as soon as it was dark. Lin Qinhe asked: Are you afraid on the way back? Tao Xi nodded and said, Its dark and quiet in the mountains at night. Im timid and afraid of the dark. I was scared when I heard the dog barking. At that time, I thought, if only I could get bolder overnight, I wouldnt be afraid to leave there. While speaking, he felt his fingers being held into Lin Qinhes palm, and wrapped him tightly. Lin Qinhe looked at him, raised his eyebrows slightly and said, You never seem to be timid in front of me. Tao Xi was stunned, recalling that when he first arrived at Wenhua No. 1 High School, he jumped up and down in front of Lin Qinhe, who was like an iceberg, with a slight timidity. Thats different. He smiled. Running towards Lin Qinhe was the bravest thing he had ever done. But to go back to an unfamiliar home, he was still scared. Just like when he ran away from home when he was young, he was afraid that his family would beat and scold him because of this. But he was also afraid that they would not beat and scold him, feeling contradictory and anxious. Tao Xi stared at the soup bowl, Lin Qinhe held his hand and accompanied him in silence. After a while he spoke again, his voice was low, as if to say to Lin Qinhe, and also as if to say to himself: You asked me before why I didnt tell you earlier, I said it was because I promised Guo Ping, but actually it wasnt. Because Im a little scared, Im afraid that I imagined something too good, but in the end things were not as good as I thought. Im afraid that they will be disappointed in me and unwilling to accept me. Im also afraid that they will treat me well because they feel guilty. Im afraid that they would be in a difficult situation because of me and Yang Duole He had never told Lin Qinhe about these contradictory and complicated thoughts. This was the cowardly and timid side of himself that he didnt want to show. Lin Qinhes gaze had always fallen on him, and said to him in a warm voice: I understand. Tao Xi nodded. He hadnt spoken much since he came out of school but he seemed to open the chattering box at this moment, as if he wanted to pour out everything in his heart, he continued: Today I met them. I actually know what they came to me for. Although the letter of understanding is a bit unexpected, I can actually understand why they did that. If it were me, I think they would do it for me too. He felt the temperature of Lin Qinhes palm, and this warmth seemed to give him the courage to continue to cut himself open. Its a pity that I still failed to control my emotions. I didnt know what was going on. At that moment, I was suddenly aggrieved. I obviously wanted to tell them the truth out loud, but I just couldnt say it. Tao Xi felt that when he said aggrieved, the strength of the person holding his hand seemed to be heavier. He felt a little embarrassed when he said that. He raised his head slightly and blinked his eyes. When he turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, his eyes were full of bright smiles. He said, But I dont seem to be afraid anymore. All uneasiness stemmed from expectation and disappeared in greater expectation. When he saw Lin Qinhe in the conference room, he suddenly realized that he had a future and life that belonged to him, that he was looking forward to more. Really not afraid? Lin Qinhe looked at him and asked. Tao Xi nodded and said in a relaxed tone, The big deal is that Ill always live with you, I dont have to stay in that house, Ill have to go out sooner or later to study and work. Lin Qinhe raised his eyebrows at the words and said, Its a big deal to live with me? You have to continue to live with me even after you return home. Tao Xi asked with some amusement, What if they insist that I live at home? Isnt this your home? Lin Qinhe asked rhetorically. Tao Xi was stunned, his eyes fixed on Lin Qinhe, who locked eyes with him and continued, Maybe there wont be a certificate to prove it for a long time to come, but this will always remain the same, and there is no need to prove it, you know? They couldnt have a legally recognized relationship in this country, nor could they be in the same household registration, but so what if they didnt? Family didnt need proof. Tao Xi looked at Lin Qinhe for a long time before he came back to his senses. His eyelids were slightly lowered, but his mouth turned up and said, I know. Instead, he held Lin Qinhes hand and scratched his palm. He turned his head and whispered, Then dont be angry, okay? Before Lin Qinhe took him away today, he was obviously a bit gaffed with those elders. After taking him away, Lin Qinhe suppressed all his emotions, but he knew that Lin Qinhe was probably still having a hard time in his heart. After being silent for a while, Lin Qinhe said: I am not angry. He was just disappointed at his own inability to do anything about this matter, how could Tao Xi not need relatives. He hoped Tao Xi could have a complete family relationship more than Tao Xi did. Old Sun greeted a table of guests and walked over to ask if he wanted to add some more wontons. Tao Xi nodded and thanked him, and ate a small bowl of it. In the end, he couldnt stand up. The two of them finished their wontons and were going to leave, but Tao Xi suddenly smelled the smell coming from the barbecue stall outside and urged Lin Qinhe to go out and buy them for him. Can you still eat? Lin Qinhe asked, but still went out to buy it for Tao Xi. The barbecue stall business was very good at night. He waited in line for a while before he finished roasting. When he came back, he saw Tao Xi was listening to Old Sun talking, but when he came in, the two stopped talking. Tao Xi saw Lin Qinhes expression a little serious, and when was about to ask what was wrong, Lin Qinhe walked over to him and whispered about Fang Zuqings fainting. Lin Qinhe received a phone call from Su Yun while waiting for the barbecue, and learned that Fang Zuqing had fainted in the conference room and was sent to Hannan Hospital. Fortunately, the old man was not in a serious condition, but only fainted from a momentary shock. The doctor said he would be able to wake up soon. Tao Xis heart skipped a beat at the moment he heard the news, followed by a surge of fear; he could not imagine what to do in case something really happened to Fang Zuqing. Lin Qinhe took his arm and said soothingly: Grandpa Fang will be fine. At this time, Lin Qinhes cell phone received another call, he took it out and saw that it was from Yang Zhengming. Yang Zhengming rarely contacted Lin Qinhe. He had a bad relationship with Luo Zhengyin, but occasionally contacted Lin Qinhe because of his son. This time he called Lin Qinhe for his real son. Lin Qinhe couldnt help feeling a little ironic. Yang Zhengmings voice was hoarse on the phone. After a few rounds of greetings, he still asked Lin Qinhe tactfully if he could talk to Tao Xi. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xi on the side, Tao Xi whispered to Lin Qinhe, Tell him, I will go to Hannan Hospital tomorrow. Fang Zuqing fell ill, so he should go to visit. Sooner or later, this matter should be laid out and made clear. There was nothing to avoid. After Lin Qinhe told Yang Zhengming, Yang Zhengming seemed to be a little incredulous. After saying several words of good incoherently, he told Lin Qinhe the ward number in detail and asked if he needed to pick up Tao Xi tomorrow. Lin Qinhe refused. After hanging up the phone, Lin Qinhe said to Tao Xi: I will take you there tomorrow. Tao Xi nodded and agreed. After they went back that night, while Tao Xi was taking a bath, Lin Qinhe called his father, Lin Zeshi. Before hanging up the phone, Yang Zhengming told him that his mother Luo Zhengyin was not in good condition so she had been picked up by Lin Zeshi. He knew that after the truth came out, not only the elders of Fang family but also his mother were hit the hardest. The child that was raised with more than ten years of effort was not Fang Suis own, it was more difficult and painful for Luo Zhengyin than Yang Zhengming. Lin Zeshi had obviously learned about Tao Xi through Su Yun. He told Lin Qinhe that Luo Zhengyin did have a relapse of depression. Now he was accompanying her in a nursing home, so Lin Qinhe should not worry. Tao Xi came out of the shower, wiped his hair with a dry towel and walked to the bedroom. Lin Qinhe was sitting in front of the floor-to-ceiling window looking at the neon lights outside, he looked calm and seemed to be thinking about something. Noticing Tao Xis footsteps, Lin Qinhe returned to his senses, reaching out and wrapping his arm around Tao Xis waist, letting him sit on his lap. He picked up the hair dryer that had been placed aside to blow his hair. He didnt know why, Lin Qinhe seemed to be very keen on doing this. Tao Xi yawned, hung his head with little effort, and felt the warm wind and slender fingers moving through his hair. After blowing the hair, Tao Xi raised his hand and touched his head. He was not surprised to feel a messy hair. He sighed silently and leaned against Lin Qinhes chest with his eyes closed, and after a while, he asked: Are you going to tell me something? Lin Qinhe was still trying to fix his hair with his hands. When he heard the words, he stopped his actions and said after careful consideration: Yourfoster mother is in the hospital. Before, Tao Jians former colleague saw Tao Jian appear in Hannan Hospital and reported it to Su Yun. It was soon discovered that Tao Jian was staying with Guo Ping in Hannan Hospital. After Lin Qinhe knew about it, he hesitated for a long time and never told Tao Xi. In his original plan, he never wanted Tao Xi himself to tell the truth to the Fang family, he could not bear it. Knowing that Guo Ping had come to Wenhua City, he planned to let the instigator of all things reveal everything. Guo Ping also agreed, and even offered to apologize to Fangs family. Because Guo Ping was unable to move around in the hospital bed, only one video was recorded in the end. He just didnt expect that there would be another incident with Yang Duole later on, which disrupted his plan. After hearing that Guo Ping was hospitalized, Tao Xis body stiffened for a while, and only after a long time did he calmly ask: What illness did she have? Lin Qinhe said, Uremia, late stage. Tao Xi closed his eyes tightly and leaned his jaw on Lin Qinhes shoulder. At that moment, he didnt know what he was feeling in his heart, it was dull, mixed and confused. He tried to remember the signs on Guo Ping in the past, but he rarely went home in the past two years, Guo Pings face, which was always mixed with sorrow, was even somewhat blurred. He hates Guo Ping? Hate, of course. But. Tao Xi buried his face next to Lin Qinhes neck and took a deep breath, Lin Qinhe raised his hand and gently stroked the back of Tao Xis neck, kissed his hair and whispered, Go to sleep. At this time Tao Xi did not sleep well. He had a long dream. Sometimes it was Guo Ping, sometimes Tao Jian, and finally Tao Le. The little girl hugged him and cried, saying something, but he was awakened by Lin Qinhe without listening clearly. In the morning Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe went to Hannan Hospital, he bought some fruits near the hospital, like all the younger generations visiting their elders. But he didnt expect to run into Tao Jian at the entrance of the inpatient department. Tao Jian slipped on a pair of slippers, his face seemed to have not shaved for a few days. He looked completely unkempt that Tao Xi almost did not recognize him. His foster father was carrying a plastic bag in his hand, which seemed to be breakfast. He froze when he saw Tao Xi, his eyes fell on the fruit basket in Tao Xis hand for two seconds, and then looked at Lin Qinhe, who had a cold gaze. Tao Jian sneered and said, Finally know to see your mother? Tao Xi frowned at his words, Tao Jian reacted quickly and knew he was wrong when he saw Tao Xis expression. He quickly squeezed out a sneer and said in an odd way, Oh, it looks like youve already recognized your own father and are rushing to do your filial duty? Lin Qinhes eyes looking at Tao Jian were gloomy. Tao Xi did not react to Tao Jians words, only said calmly, I dont have time to argue with you now. After saying that, he and Lin Qinhe turned around and continued walking towards the elevator, but after walking a few steps, Tao Xi heard the shuffling sound of slippers coming from behind him, and he paused in his steps. Tao Jian reached out to grab Tao Xis arm, but Tao Xi was wrapped around Lin Qinhe and took a step backward, letting his hand fall short. He didnt move his hands anymore, only raised his eyebrows and asked Tao Xi: Do you know where that kid Yang Duole is now? The word Yang Duole was bitten so hard that he almost gnashed his teeth. Tao Xi asked rhetorically, Have you been asking him for money? How come you dont know? Tao Jians face suddenly turned pale, his throat and eyes were angry: I am his old man, his mother is sick, shouldnt he pay for his mothers treatment?! Tao Xi frowned and said, I do not know, you go find him yourself. Tao Jian fell silent. At that moment, Tao Xi seemed to see heavy exhaustion and depression in the man he had called his father for many years. Tao Jian finally waved his hand and turned around by himself, but he turned around abruptly after taking a few steps, and said impatiently to Tao Xi, Go see her if you have time, she wants to see you, and then walked away completely before Tao Xi agreed. Tao Xi stood still and did not move for a while. Lin Qinhe held his hand in the crowd of people pushing out, put it in his palm, pulled him into the elevator, and told him about Guo Pings condition. Guo Ping was already in the late stage of uremia. During this time, she had been undergoing dialysis in the hospital. However, the doctor said that it was better to have a kidney transplant. Tao Le was too young and suffered from lupus erythematosus, and Tao Jian was anxious to find Yang Duole, it should be for this matter. Tao Xi, however, felt that this might not be Guo Pings intention. Guo Ping was willing to hand him over to others for the sake of this son, and even kept it a secret for more than ten years, would she bear to let him change his kidney for her? But this had nothing to do with him. After the elevator door opened, Tao Xi saw Yang Zhengming standing not far from the exit and looking at him, apparently waiting for his arrival. Yang Zhengming was still wearing the same clothes as yesterday, the expensive fabric was already a little wrinkled and the usual spring, the warm handsome face was heavy with fatigue and he still had the smell of cigarettes. Obviously, he didnt have much rest that night, but when he saw Tao Xi, he still smiled quickly. When he called out Tao Xis name, there was a moment of unnaturalness for Yang Zhengming. This unnaturalness became more apparent when he tried to take the fruit in Tao Xis hand, but Tao Xi said No, Uncle Yang. Yang Zhengming withdrew his stiff hand, his smile lingered at the corner of his mouth, and led the way for the two of them. He had always been good at talking, but at this moment, he didnt know what to say to his own but unfamiliar child, so he said something like Fang Zuqing had woken up and told him not to worry. Tao Xi naturally followed Yang Zhengmings words, not showing any resistance, but also didnt mean to be close. To be honest, he did not have a good impression of Yang Zhengming. Just one Guan Fanyun, who resembled his mother but was stupid, and it was enough to make him have a bad impression of this father. This was after all a family matter between the Fang family and the Yang family, Lin Qinhe knew that it was not very suitable for him to get involved. He held Tao Xis hand and squeezed it not too lightly but also not too heavily. Tao Xi nodded, shook Lin Qinhes hand back and let go. Yang Zhengming saw the hand held by the two of them just now but did not say anything and pushed the ward door open. Tao Xi looked at the opened door and suddenly remembered that night in the hospital, he hid outside the door of the ward, watching his grandparents wipe tears for Yang Duole on the hospital bed, obviously only a door away, but it was as if they were a world apart. At this moment, in the same hospital, outside of the same ward, he took a deep breath, took a step and walked to the two old people inside. T/N: Update daily until its complete. There are only six chapters left CH 60 Tao Xi walked into the ward, and Fang Zuqing who was on the hospital bed and Ye Yurong who was sitting on the side both looked at him. The moment the eyes of the two old people met him, he seemed to feel a slight tremor, and the heavy emotions made him suddenly uncomfortable. He was dumbfounded for a moment, standing in place and not knowing what to say. Luckily, Yang Zhengming on the side helped him to take away the fruit he was holding and put it on the bed, saying to Fang Zuqing, This is what Tao Xi bought for you. Ye Yurong hurriedly stood up from the chair. It seemed that her eyes were red when she saw Tao Xi. She took two steps towards Tao Xi, but did not dare to go in front of him, beckoned towards him, called in a soft tone: Child, come and sit here. Fang Zuqing was wearing a hospital gown, with a dangling needle in the back of his hand, and his pale face was filled with a drooping sickness, as if he had aged overnight. After seeing Tao Xi coming in, the hand with the hanging needle kept trembling. Tao Xi walked to the chair beside the hospital bed and sat down on the chair under the eyes of the three people. Yang Zhengming took another chair and wanted to help Ye Yurong to sit down, but Ye Yurong did not sit down, and instead turned her back and wiped tears with the back of her hand. She then poured a cup of warm water and handed it to Tao Xi, while asking him intently whether he had breakfast and whether he was hungry. Like yesterday in the conference room, Tao Xi took the glass of water with both hands and said thank you softly. He could feel the old peoples careful attention, and he could also feel the heavy and deep shame behind this attention. He accepted them one by one, because it felt like if he showed a little resistance, Ye Yurong would shed tears sadly. He picked up the warm water that Ye Yurong poured him, bowed his head and took a sip. Ye Yurong finally sat down beside him, and the two old peoples eyes fell on him. Tao Xi felt that their eyes seemed to have weight. He curled up his fingers, trying to say something, but didnt know what to say. Obviously he was the closest person by blood, but he was also the strangest person. This awkward atmosphere lasted for ten seconds or so before Fang Zuqing spoke up. He seemed to be struggling a bit to speak, but still tried to clear his throat and asked Tao Xi, like all parents do, Have you taken time off from the school teacher? Tao Xi nodded and said, I took a leave of absence. The two old people had been scrutinizing the seventeen-year-old boy in front of them, and those eyes were too much like their daughters. They were a little frightened when they first saw it in the conference room yesterday, but now when they look closely, they were full of unspeakable pain. Ye Yurong didnt look away, took out a handkerchief to wipe the corners of her eyes, then stretched out her hands and gently held Tao Xis hand. Tao Xi did not resist, just lowered his gaze. Ye Yurong looked down at Tao Xis hand, his eyes reddened again. These slender hands, like her daughter, were naturally suitable for holding paint brushes, and shouldnt suffer the slightest bit of suffering. She didnt dare to imagine what life her grandson had been living in the past seventeen years. After a long silence, Tao Xi heard his grandmother trembled: Child, these years, I have wronged you all these years. Before she finished speaking, a few tears dropped from her dim eyes and fell on the back of Tao Xis hand. Tao Xi shrank impenetrably as if he had been scalded, and his eyes were a little swollen. In the end, he just shook his head in silence. That family, do they treat you well? Ye Yurong couldnt help but ask the question she wanted to ask the most, she looked at Tao Xi somewhat eagerly, her tone was fluky with anticipation. Sitting on the hospital bed, Fang Zuqings sullen gaze also fell on Tao Xis face, silently asking the same question. Tao Xi didnt know how to answer this question. The seventeen years of life seemed to flash in his mind only briefly. Too many emotions were stacked together, pressing on his throat and tongue. In the end, he only said: I have been doing well. But this answer didnt seem to give the two old person half comfort. They both fell silent, and Yang Zhengming, who was standing by the side, did not speak either. They had already heard Su Yun talk a lot about Tao Xi last night and didnt even have time to be surprised why the Lin family secretary knew so much about it. They knew how poor that family was, with an adoptive father who worked outside all the time and a sick sister, knew that Tao Xi had excellent grades, had taken the top spot in the county, and was able to come to Wenhua No.1 High School through the Lin familys funding program, and also knew that he had inherited his mothers talent for painting, and even though he had been delayed for many years, he could still be shortlisted for the top national competitions. A child who wanted to have a good life couldnt do without his parents hard work. Their child walked the most rugged road in the world and became excellent people. But this road should have been a smooth road. He walked on this road alone for seventeen years, traversing mountains and ridges, and after all the hardships and dangers before he got home, only for them to witness the child they had raised nearly cutting off and destroying his promising future. They even used the weight of an adult to force him to sign a letter of understanding. The compensation clauses that they thought were full of sincerity were also ironically obvious, it was something that he should have had since birth, but they used those as a condition to force a compromise, it was so absurd and ridiculous. They hated Guo Ping as much as they hated themselves. Now their child was still willing to take the initiative to visit them and say to them that he was doing well. Ye Yurong turned away and couldnt bear to ask any more, Fang Zuqings pale face covered with furrows was blue, and and his turbid eyes were condensed with sorrow and regret, he used the hand with the needle, trembling to reach out to Tao Xi. Tao Xi hesitated for a moment and took Fang Zuqings hand back. He heard the old man with white hair in front of him say to him in a hoarse voice: Child, grandpa is sorry for you, you can blame me and hate me. I am sorry for my daughter and my grandson. I promised her to raise her child well and let him grow up healthy and happy. But I let him suffer for so many years outside alone. After finally returning to the doorstep, you still have to suffer from the grievances He began to weep in the middle of the talk. This old professor, who was never smiling, had never cried so much except after the death of his daughter. He clutched Tao Xis hand tightly, crouching as if he was apologizing. Tao Xi felt the uncontrollable trembling of the old hand, and the shame that came over his head was too heavy and wrapped around him impermeably, making his heart feel dull and even his breathing a little sluggish. He took a deep breath and tried to calmly say to the old man: You didnt have to apologize to me. I wont resent you and hate you, really, Ive had a really good time all these years. But the two old people were still very emotional, Ye Yurong could no longer hold back, she tentatively stretched out her hands and put her arms around the teenager in front of her. Tao Xi did not resist, and leaned stiffly against Ye Yurongs arms. He had never been hugged by grandma before. At this time, he was helpless like a child being hugged by an adult for the first time, with his hands and feet cramped. Ye Yurong gently patted his stiff back, like his grandmother used to hold his sister Tao Le. He heard his grandmother crying and saying to him: Im sorry, its Grandmas fault for not taking my grandson home sooner, my grandson wanted to go home, I didnt even know, I left him alone for so long .. Tao Xis Adams apple suddenly rolled, he closed his eyes hard, and the tears accumulated in his eyes silently soaked grandmas clothes. Yang Zhengming looked at the two people and child in front of him, tears came from his red eyes. How many seventeen years were there in life, could the remaining years of the old man have another seventeen years? Destiny made such a cruel joke, those years would never come back. Tao Xi didnt know how long grandma held him and cried, and finally he and Yang Zhengming calmed the two old people together. Ye Yurong wiped away her tears, held his hand and asked a lot of questions, asking him about his childhood, whether he was sick, whether he was eating well, whether he was bullied at school In fact, these past events have no retrospective significance. Tao Xi picked out some unusual things and answered them simply. They didnt mention Guo Ping, nor Yang Duole. The former made them hate to their bones, while the latter, a child raised by themselves, was obviously still in an emotional state and didnt know what to do. Tao Xi noticed their avoidance and didnt say anything. After having a conversation with the two old people and seeing Fang Zuqing look tired, he planned to say goodbye. Just as soon as he stood up, he suddenly heard the sound of the door being opened. He turned around and saw Yang Duole standing at the door, his eyes colliding with his. Yang Duole stared at Tao Xi for two seconds, then his eyes bounced over the other three people in the ward. There was no expression on his face, and the next second he turned around and lifted his feet to leave. Yang Duole! Fang Zuqing on the hospital bed shouted sternly, coughing violently after shouting. Yang Duole stopped stiffly, but did not look back. Ye Yurong was going to step forward and hold Yang Duole. Seeing Fang Zuqing coughing, she had to bend down to give Fang Zuqing a good air, but Yang Zhengming had already strode forward and grabbed Yang Duoles arm, and said coldly: How much longer do you want to hide? His original intention was to ask Yang Duole until when he wanted to avoid admitting his mistake, but Yang Duole clearly misunderstood him. He violently broke away from Yang Zhengmings hand and looked at Yang Zhengming, sneering: Your son is not here? Or do you want to hold a ceremony to recognize relatives and specifically call me to hand over your sons identity to him? Yang Zhengmings face became extremely ugly. He finally managed to contact Yang Duole yesterday and only said that Fang Zuqing had fallen ill and asked him to come to the hospital, but Yang Duole refused. He didnt expect Yang Duole to come today and run into Tao Xi here. He held back his anger, and seriously said to Yang Duole: Lets not talk about this matter first, just talk about the good things you did yourself, slander Tao Xi for plagiarism, and almost ruin other peoples competition. Shouldnt you apologize to him?! Fang Zuqing finally stopped coughing, the old man was furious after a great sorrow. His face was abnormally blue, and his trembling fingers stretched out and Yang Dole shouted: Hurry up and apologize! The old man was really angry. He found that Yang Duole seemed to have known the true birth of Tao Xi. He had wondered why Yang Duole had framed a classmate who had nothing to do with him. Now that everything was clear, he was even more angry. In the face of his grandfather who loved him since he was a child, Yang Duole didnt sneer again. He bit his lips tightly, staring at the floor with dark eyes, but still unmoved. Ye Yurong finally could not bear it, she wailed and persuaded: Lele, you have to admit and repent for doing wrong, you made such a big mistake, you should apologize to Tao Xi properly. Standing in the ward, Tao Xi watched the farce coldly, put his hand in his pocket and touched the phone, regretting not leaving earlier. Yang Zhengming calmed down and stopped talking. Ye Yurong was still persuading him. After about three minutes, Yang Duole finally raised his head to look at Tao Xi. He stepped forward and slowly walked towards Tao Xi, standing a step away from him. Tao Xi stared at the pale person in front of him calmly. He once didnt dare to look at this person, as if he stared for one more second he would not be able to hide the resentment and cynicism in his eyes. At this moment, he saw this pair of extremely similar Guo Pings eyes, like him in the past, filled with strong resentment. You did it on purpose, didnt you? Yang Duoles bloodless lips moved, his voice was not loud but it was enough for everyone to hear. Tao Xi frowned and looked at Yang Duole without a word, his eyes were cold. Yang Duole! Fang Zuqing was almost heartbroken. He didnt expect Yang Duole was still obsessed, and Ye Yurong also sighed anxiously. After all, this was the child they have raised since childhood. No matter how disappointed and angry they were, the seventeen years relationship would not disappear overnight. They didnt want to hurt Tao Xi any more, and they didnt want Yang Duole to go further and further on the wrong road, which led to irreconcilable contradiction with Taoxi. After all, they no longer had the position to defend Yang Duole. Yang Duole turned a deaf ear to the anxious reminders of the two old people. He seemed to be remembering something, staring at Tao Xi, and said with confidence: Youve known it a long time ago. Youve known it from the first day you came to Wenhua No.1 High School and met me. He paused, the corners of his mouth pulled up a smile and continued,: You deliberately please Lin Qinhe, deliberately approach Yang Zhengming, and deliberately mention to Mother Luo that you want to participate in the art competition in front of me. You are a student of Qiao Henian, because you know these can stimulate me most. You deliberately drew the submission of the competition in front of Xu Ziqi in the dormitory, because you heard what I said to Guan Fanyun that night, didnt you?! Yang Duole spoke faster and faster. At the end of his speech, his chest began to rise and fall, his eyes pierced Tao Xis body as if he wanted to gouge his flesh. What are you babbling about! Yang Zhengmings veins stood out on his forehead. He couldnt help but come forward and grab Yang Duoles arm and pull it back, and Yang Duole once again struggled away. Yang Duole kept staring at Tao Xi and with blood in his eyes, he continued hysterically: After so long, so many opportunities in front of you, you never say it not because you are not willing! Youre afraid that even if they recognize you back, they wont drive me away, so you plan to retaliate against me, dont you?! Fang Zuqing coughed violently after hearing this nonsense. Ye Yurong was angry and anxious. She had never said a serious word to Yang Duole but at this time, she couldnt help but scolded in extreme disappointment: Lele! We didnt teach you like this when you were little, why do you blame others for your own wrongdoings? No one is forcing you to make mistakes. But Yang Duole couldnt hear it at all. He believed that Tao Xi deliberately retaliated against him, and stared at Tao Xi nonchalantly, as if he had to admit it. But Tao Xi looked calm from beginning to end. He ignored Yang Duoles repeated questions, and only said: Yang Duole, you should go see your biological mother. Yang Duoles pupils shrank suddenly, as if he had heard something that made him extremely disgusted with fear. He gritted his teeth and said: Did Tao Jian ask you to persuade me? You tell her that I wont look at her even if she dies! Tao Xi looked at Yang Duoles look of avoiding snakes and scorpions, and thought of the woman who was still waiting to see her own son in the hospital bed, a trace of absurd sadness came into his heart. I just feel bad for your mother, who stole my name for you and let you take up seventeen years of my life, but youre stuck living this ridiculous life. Am I ridiculous? Yang Duole seemed to be irritated by these words and shouted almost hysterically, You think I want this name and this kind of life?! His eyes swept over the faces of the other three adults, and suddenly he smiled and said: Always looking for the shadow of a dead person in me. Ive had enough of this kind of life! The three adults changed their faces when they heard this. Yang Duole, do you know what you are talking about! Yang Zhengming frowned and interrupted coldly. Isnt it? Yang Duole looked at Yang Zhengming with sharp eyes. Arent you disappointed that I am not like her? He seemed to be depressed for a long time and finally found a chance to break out, and smiled sadly to himself: Yes, I dont look like her, I cant draw, Qiao Henian refused to accept me as a student, but what can I do, what can I do! Ive been trying to learn for a long, long time, but I just cant. You guys say to me that it doesnt matter, but you cant hide the disappointment on your faces! Yang Duoles chest fluctuated violently, his eyes were red, and his pale face was full of tears. Lele, we did not Ye Yurong looked at the child she had spoiled and raised in front of her in disbelief, she never knew he had such a lot of resentment towards them. But Yang Duole obviously did not finish venting his grievances, he cried so much that his face was somewhat distorted: Those relatives joke that I am not biological behind me, that you guys are holding the wrong one, you all told me it was a joke, not to take it to heart, but who of you know I am afraid! Every time my blood was drawn at the hospital I was afraid that you would quietly go and do a paternity test, and every time I had a nightmare, I dreamed that I was a fake. If you find it, you will lose me immediately! Yang Duole raised his hand and pointed to Tao Xi, showing an ugly smile and said, Now the real Yang Duole is back, you guys got what you wanted. You dont need to be disappointed anymore. Isnt it great? The two old people looked at Yang Duole with red eyes and tears, and their expressions were shocked. They opened their mouths but didnt know what to say. Yang Zhengming frowned and said nothing. Ye Yurong was still heartbroken, holding a tissue to wipe Yang Duoles tears, but suddenly heard Tao Xi, who had not spoken, said: Are you trying to make them feel guilty about you by putting all the blame on others and taking it off yourself, as if the whole world has wronged you? Yang Duoles choking stopped. Tao Xi looked at Yang Duole coldly, as if looking at a child who would only cry and sneer, and asked calmly: You know in your own heart exactly how they have treated you these past ten years. Do you dare to say to your grandparents, whom you have called out to for so many years, that they have ever wronged you? Yang Duole bit his lip and said nothing. Fang Zuqing sighed, Ye Yurong turned away and wiped her tears, Yang Duoles words did hurt them. Youve been with them for so many years that even if they knew you werent their own, they wouldnt leave you behind. Its not that you dont know this, youre just not satisfied and not willing to let me take a tiny bit of it, arent you? Tao Xi looked straight at Yang Duole, but Yang Duole remained silent and did not speak. He took a step closer to Yang Duole, looked at the resentment on his face, and said coldly: Yang Duole, what disappointed them was not that you were not like my mother, but that they raised you with care and gave you so much love, yet you only learned to be selfish and resentful. You say I am resentful, but what is there to be resentful about you? Yang Duole suddenly raised his eyes to look at him. Tao Xi turned a blind eye to the resentment in Yang Duoles eyes, and was extremely tired of the farce. He simply bid farewell to the two old men and walked outside the ward. Not long after he walked out of the ward, Yang Zhengming chased him from behind, took his arm, and quickly let go. Tao Xi stopped and looked at Yang Zhengming, politely asking, Do you have anything else? Yang Zhengming looked at these cold-eyed eyes, and only felt a mixture of flavours. He said to Tao Xi in a somewhat flattering tone: Move in back, grandparents and I hope you can come back, and the room at home is already being arranged. The sound of crying came faintly from the ward, and Tao Xi remained silent and did not answer. Seeing Tao Xi not speaking, Yang Zhengming added: If youre not used to living here, I still have a house, so tell me what you think, and Ill set it up however youre comfortable, as long as youre willing to come back and live here. This was their original plan. Their child had no reason to live outside. First, let Tao Xi come back to live in Fangs house. If Taoxi couldnt adapt, Yang Zhengming was ready to let Tao Xi live in a house he had just bought before, and the property would naturally belong to Tao Xi in the future. Yang Zhengming expected Tao Xi to say yes, but instead he saw Tao Xis eyes turn to the end of the corridor. At that moment, his eyes were like the evening stars suddenly brightening, and for a moment Yang Zhengming was in a bit of a trance. Fang Sui once had also looked at him with such bright eyes. Thank you, but dont bother. Yang Zhengming heard Tao Xi say this in his daze, followed by his farewell, and then he walked quickly towards the other end of the corridor. CH 61 Tao Xi walked up to Lin Qinhe, who was holding a bag of sugar roasted chestnuts, and he handed it to him. The chestnuts were still warm, and the fragrance came to his face. Tao Xi took out one and peeled it, the sweet and dense taste made him squint his eyes, and the irritation seemed to fade away. He asked Lin Qinhe: How do you know I want to eat sugar roasted chestnuts, where did you buy it? Lin Qinhe looked at Yang Zhengming who was still standing there, and then walked towards the elevator entrance with Tao Xi while saying, There is a shop selling sugar roasted chestnuts next to the fruit shop. When buying fruit before, Lin Qinhe saw Tao Xi look at the fried chestnuts next door several times and knew he wanted to eat them so he went to buy them while they were talking. Is that so? I dont remember. Tao Xi peeled another chestnut and fed it to Lin Qinhe. Seeing Tao Xis expression as usual, Lin Qinhe relaxed a little. He didnt ask about the ward, but asked, Will you go back to school in the afternoon? Tao Xi continued to eat chestnuts, nodding as he said, I missed so many classes yesterday afternoon plus this morning, I have to catch up on my classes and homework. After following Lin Qinhe out of the hospital, Tao Xi suddenly looked back at the tall building of the inpatient department, Lin Qinhe seemed to know what he was thinking and asked him, Do you want to go take a look? Tao Xi dropped his eyelashes in silence for a moment and finally shook his head. They went back to school, and life seemed to be no different from before. High school was intense, and Tao Xi didnt have much of a mind to think about anything else; he was focused on preparing for the TOEFL and final exams. But the day before New Years Day, Fang Zuqing called him personally, and the old man spoke earnestly, hoping he could come home for a meal in the evening. Tao Xi agreed. Yang Zhengming drove to Wenhua No. 1 High School to pick up Tao Xi. When the guard at the gate saw him, he asked politely: Mr. Yang came to pick up your son? Yang Zhengming only smiled and nodded. After school, Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe walked to the gate of the school and saw Yang Zhengming at a glance. In the past two days, Yang Zhengming had come very often, sending gifts and food, and he had almost become uncomfortable with this man. Yang Zhengming hurried forward, took Tao Xis schoolbag in the surprised eyes of the guard, and said with a smile: Ive come to pick you up and take you back to Grandpas house. Tao Xi felt that this smile on Yang Zhengmings face was somehow familiar. He thought about it and did not refuse. After all, after so many years, no matter what kind of person Yang Zhengming was, their father-son relationship could not be changed. Lin Qinhe had never had a good impression of Yang Zhengming, and now it was even worse, he just asked Tao Xi in a low voice: Are you coming back tonight? Tao Xi hesitated, thinking of Grandpas intention of wanting him to stay overnight on the phone, and said with uncertainty, I should be back. Lin Qinhe didnt say anything, just said Okay. After Tao Xi bid farewell to Lin Qinhe and got into Yang Zhengmings car, Bi Chengfei, who had just witnessed this scene, almost had his eyes popped out. He walked up and put his hand on Lin Qinhes shoulder and asked in shock, Xueshen, why did Xi ge get into Yang Duoles dads car? He suddenly thought that Yang Zhengming was also involved in the CAC competition, and suddenly realized: Did he ask Xi ge to apologize? Or is he trying to bully his way in? Lin Qinhe threw away Bi Chengfeis hand and turned to walk away without a word. Bi Chengfei stood in place worrying about Tao Xis safety, and suddenly thought of the look on Lin Qinhes face just now, that expression, it was as if he saw Tao Xi being abducted and sold. Tao Xi sat in the passenger seat and watched Yang Zhengming fumbling with the radio, while asking him what songs he liked, he said whatever. Yang Zhengming then played some songs that he thought high school boys would like to listen to, and deliberately looked for topics to talk about with Tao Xi. It was nothing more than learning and painting. However, the two were unfamiliar with each other and had nothing to say. Tao Xis answer was very perfunctory, but Yang Zhengming was not at all annoyed. In the car, Tao Xi finally remembered how familiar Yang Zhengmings smile was. When he had met Yang Zhengming at the Crab House before, accompanying Yang Duole to catch the doll, Yang Zhengming had that smile of pleasing and indulgence on his face. But now the smile was a little stronger and a little more awkward. He suddenly felt a little funny. Yang Zhengming had failed to please a fake son, and now he was trying to please a real one, changing roles so quickly, as if he didnt have any feelings for Yang Duole. Perhaps only such a heartless person would find a lover after the death of someone he loved dearly, without a care in the world. Seeing that Tao Xi really didnt have much interest in talking to him, Yang Zhengming stopped talking after a while. In the evening rush hour traffic jam, one after another honking sound came from the car window, mixed with the unpleasant music in the car, Tao Xi closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep but just as he was about to fall asleep, he suddenly heard Yang Zhengming say: Tao Xi, I havent been able to say sorry to you during this period of time. I am responsible for Yang Duole and Guan Fanyun. I have broken up with Guan Fanyun. Tao Xi closed his eyes and did not respond. Yang Zhengming knew that Tao Xi was listening. He rubbed his fingers on the steering wheel, hesitating for a long time before finally saying in a breath: In fact, I havent fulfilled my responsibilities as a father all these years. Now it seems ridiculous to start being a father, but I really think so, I hope youIts not that I want you to accept me as soon as possible, but that you dont resist me and give me a chance to make up for you. Yang Zhengming had always been good at speaking. Even though these few words were spoken with hesitation and apprehension, but obviously, he had been preparing for a long time. Tao Xi half opened his eyes. Yang Zhengming suddenly became so serious that he didnt know what to say at the moment, only pressed his lips lightly. Seeing that Tao Xi didnt speak, Yang Zhengming turned to ask carefully: You and Qinhe are living together now, right? Hearing Lin Qinhes name, Tao Xis gaze instantly turned to Yang Zhengming, his gaze was clearly guarded. Yang Zhengming saw this wariness, smiled bitterly and hurriedly explained: Im not trying to oppose anything, Qinhe is a very good child. I just want to say that you are free to do what you like and be with the person you like, and dad will always support you. He could tell the relationship between Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe at a glance. He had no opinion about it, nor was he qualified to have an opinion. However, the Lin familys family style was strict, the old man of the Lin family was notoriously old-fashioned and conservative. He thought of his own father-in-law, who was just like him, and couldnt help worrying that Tao Xi would experience ups and downs like himself in the future. Tao Xi was a little stunned by Yang Zhengmings sudden remark. He was silent for a while and turned his head to look at Yang Zhengming. Yang Zhengming looked at the traffic ahead. Noticing Tao Xis line of sight, he turned to look at him, and asked warmly, Whats wrong? Tao Xi pursed his lower lip, and didnt respond to Yang Zhengmings previous words. He only said: Turn off the music, its unpleasant to listen to. Yang Zhengming was stunned for a moment. A smile appeared on his face as he said okay and quickly turned off the music. After the Fang family moved out of the professor building of the Wenhua University, they had been living in a villa area on the outskirts of the city, a detached house, which was taken care of by the two elderly people. With a bright moon in the night sky, the car slowly drove into the yard with a light on. Tao Xi saw two elderly people in the warm yellow light in the car, supporting each other and standing in front of the house, and after seeing the car coming in, they walked two steps forward, waving to him with a smile. Tao Xi remembered this scene for a long time for some reason. After getting out of the car, he was welcomed into the house by the two old people, and was greeted by the fragrance of rice and melting warmth. Ye Yurong helped him hang up his school bag and coat and took him to wash his hands. Together with Fang Zuqing, they held him to the dining room where dinner had already been prepared. There were plenty of dishes on the table, so Ye Yurong asked him to sit down and introduce these homemade dishes to him with a smile. I dont know what you like to eat, so I have made a variety of dishes. If theres a dish you like, tell grandma, grandma will cook it for you later. Tao Xi was somehow uncomfortable, not for discomfort, but because he had never experienced such overwhelming attentiveness before. He curled up his fingers and whispered a sentence of thank you. What is there to thank in your own home. Ye Yurong smiled. When she heard a ding in the kitchen, she turned around to fetch the last dish in the oven but Yang Zhengming hurriedly asked Ye Yurong to sit down and went to get the dish. It was a garlic-flavored roasted wing. It was roasted well, with a hot aroma. Yang Zhengming put the dish on the empty place on the table, but Fang Zuqing, who had already sat down, slowly stood up. It hadnt been long since the old man was discharged from the hospital so his hands and feet were still inconvenient. He supported the tabletop with one hand, his body slightly leaned toward Tao Xi, and the other hand slowly moved the plate of grilled wings in front of Tao Xi, and said in a kind voice: Children like to eat these, we are too old to eat them. Tao Xi looked at the uncontrollable trembling hand and heard the sound of children. Suddenly his vision became blurred. He blinked quickly, stood up and assisted Fang Zuqing to sit down on the chair. Yang Zhengming took out the various drinks that had been prepared and asked Tao Xi what he wanted to drink. Tao Xi said he only drank rice wine. Ye Yurong made that rice wine and seeing Tao Xi liked to drink it, she smiled very happily and said: Your mother liked to drink my rice wine since she was a child, but she would get drunk if she had more than one bowl. Once she secretly drank too much and passed out. I thought she was sick and took her to the hospital, it turned out to be a joke. Tao Xi was yearning and curious about his mother, and the two old people then told him a lot of things about Fang Suis past. In their narration, Tao Xi knew that his mother was like the daughters of all wealthy families, simple and naive, growing up in a loving environment, but neither of them told why Fang Sui ended up going to Taoxi Bay alone. The atmosphere of this dinner was like the New Years Eve dinner of an ordinary family. Perhaps the house was so warm that it was easy to relax. Tao Xi suddenly had an illusion that he seemed to have been here all these seventeen years, and every day when he came back from school and threw his school bag on the sofa, his grandmother would make a table of dishes and call him for dinner, and his grandfather would ask him what he had learned at school today. With seventeen years of absence and blankness, no matter how deep the blood ties were, it was impossible to make the strangeness disappear overnight. It might take a year or two or even longer to fill the gap in these years. Perhaps one day the cracks would be healed by the years, and they would eventually be in perfect harmony. In the middle of dinner, Fang Zuqing hesitated for a long time, but still mentioned Yang Duole to Tao Xi. This was the choice they had to make. Its our fault that he did such a wrong thing, its our fault that we pampered him too much, so he didnt learn well and walk on the wrong path. Speaking of this child, Fang Zuqing eyes show a sigh of regret: We raised him, and we didnt ask him for anything in return. We wont continue to raise him when he becomes an adult. He made his own mistakes and he should pay the price. The result of the schools side is to withdraw from school. We wont stop him again, just After all, he was the child he raised with his own hands. He was able to sever this kind of nurturing with a cruel heart, but he still couldnt stand watching him and his grandson get caught in a lawsuit. Fang Zuqing sighed. The sudden and dramatic changes in the past few days made the old man much older, he pleaded with Tao Xi: My child, I know you will not forgive him, and I do not ask you to understand him. Its just that can you look at grandpas face and stop pursuing his legal responsibility anymore. You will have nothing to do with him in the future, and we will never keep him here. This will always be your home. If Yang Duole did not do such a thing, they might continue to keep Yang Duole at home after so many years of affection. But now they knew that their own grandson would never be able to live in harmony with Tao Xi; letting him stay here, they were afraid that Tao Xi would not come back at all. The dining room was quiet, Ye Yurong also looked at Tao Xi earnestly, and Yang Zhengming remained silent. Tao Xi was quiet for a while, and finally said, Okay. He was not such a generous person, but he didnt want to see his grandpa and grandmother caught in distress again. Even though he knew that the two old people might not be as heartless as they say they were and would probably still care about Yang Duole, he no longer cared because Yang Duole was no longer in his eyes. After that, the atmosphere on the dining table gradually became lively. Tao Xi finished drinking a bowl of rice wine and couldnt help adding another bowl. After drinking, his eyes were still clear, and Ye Yurong smiled and sighed that he was drinking much better than his mother. After dinner, the family sat and talked in the living room. Fang Zuqing wanted Tao Xi to stay and showed him the new room. The room was large, with a wide balcony, and several easels of different sizes. But Tao Xi politely declined, only saying that had to go to school early the next day and this place was a little far away from the school even by car. Seeing that the two old people were disappointed, he promised that he would come and live during the holiday. The old man thought he lived in the dormitory and asked Yang Zhengming to send him back. Yang Zhengming, according to the address given by Tao Xi, sent him to the entrance of the neighborhood of Lin Qinhes house. Before Tao Xi got off the car, Yang Zhengming was torn for a moment, but could not resist to vaguely remind his son: You are still young, there are some things that are better to do when you are an adult. Tao Xi has been sleeping on the way back. Shortly after he was woken up, he looked at him blankly and asked, What is it? Haha, its nothing. Yang Zhengming awkwardly closed the conversation. Seeing Tao Xis appearance, he knew that this child was still a blank sheet of paper, and thought that Lin Qinhe, who was so stable, should not be fooling around. He smiled as he watched Tao Xi enter the neighborhood, but the more he thought about it, the more wrong it was. He didnt object to his son falling in love with Lin Qinhe, but what happened to his son living in someone elses house, at least let Lin Qinhe should come to live in his sons house occasionally. Yang Zhengming shook his head and decided to put the river view house he just bought under Tao Xis name as soon as possible. When Tao Xi returned home, Lin Qinhe was taking a bath in the bathroom. Lin Qinhe opened the door in a bathrobe after taking a bath and saw a figure flying over. He quickly hugged him, with his hands around Tao Xis buttocks and waist. His expression on his face was calm, but the surprise smile in his eyes couldnt be hidden. I thought you would stay at Grandpas house. Tao Xis legs clamped around Lin Qinhes waist with one arm wrapped around Lin Qinhes neck while the other hand hooked Lin Qinhes chin and said with a smile, Im coming back to spend New Years Eve with you. Lin Qinhe obediently raised his jaw, looking at Tao Xi who was somehow clingy tonight, the corners of his mouth hooked into a smile, and he asked in a low voice, How to accompany, ah? Tao Xi didnt react, and his mind was stuck and repeated: How to accompany? Lin Qinhe stared at Tao Xis confused eyes for two seconds and sighed in his heart as he carried Tao Xi towards the bedroom, asking in a rambling voice, How was the food at Grandpas house? When Tao Xi heard this question, his eyes became bright and he said with a smile: It was delicious, Grandma cooked a lot of dishes for me. Which dish do you like best? Tao Xi tilted his head and tangled for a while, and finally said: Roasted wings with garlic. After thinking about it, he added, There is also rice wine made by grandma, it is delicious! No wonder. Lin Qinhe hugged Tao Xi and walked to the floor-to-ceiling windows. Today was the last day of the year. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, you could overlook the neon-flickering riverside square, where the crowds were surging and lively, waiting for the arrival of the new year with great fanfare. Lin Qinhe wanted to put Tao Xi on the recliner, but Tao Xis arms and legs were wrapped tightly around him and he didnt seem to want to come down, so Lin Qinhe continued to hold Tao Xi and walked slowly around the room like a coaxing child, asking him about his first experience back at his grandfathers house. I have a room now, with a big balcony overlooking the garden, and Grandpa said I can draw there. Tao Xi nibbled on Lin Qinhes ear. Do you like that room? Like! Ill take you to play next time. Lin Qinhe smiled and said, Okay. Grandma said she wanted to knit a scarf for me and let me choose the wool. Tao Xi again came close to Lin Qinhes ear and whispered, as if he was sharing some happy secret. Lin Qinhe asked, What color did you choose? Tao Xi curled the corners of his mouth and said, I said both gray and black look good, and Grandma said shell knit them both for me, so Ill share one with you when the time comes! Okay. Lin Qinhes smile deepened. In the end, there was nothing more to say, Tao Xi finished being excited and began to get sleepy, resting his chin on Lin Qinhes shoulder. Lin Qinhe kissed Tao Xis hair on the side and asked, Do you want me to help you take a bath? Tao Xi completely lost his previous embarrassment and nodded as he said, okay, okay. Lin Qinhe turned to the bathroom with Tao Xi in his arms and placed him on the sink. Tao Xi sat obediently, both hands propped up on the countertop, lips slightly open, looking at Lin Qinhe eagerly, as if waiting to be serviced, as if he didnt even know how to take off his clothes. Lin Qinhe stared at Tao Xis lips for two seconds, raised his hand to pinch Tao Xis chin and admonished, No drinking outside in the future, not even rice wine, understand? Tao Xi was a little confused, but still nodded and said yes But Lin Qinhe knew at this point that if he asked Tao Xi to sleep with him, Tao Xi would not hesitate to say yes, even if he didnt even know what sleeping with him meant. Tao Xi didnt notice that Lin Qinhes eyes looked a little strange when he looked at him. Remembering about taking a bath, he gently kicked Lin Qinhes leg and urged, I want to take a bath. But the next second he was kissed by Lin Qinhe who leaned in, both legs were spread, and his waist and the back of his neck were tightly clamped. He was forced to tilt his head up and close his eyes, accepting Lin Qinhes gentle kiss. He was kissed very comfortably, and his hands consciously embraced Lin Qinhes neck, but the kiss became more and more fierce, making his scalp tingle. He couldnt help but raise his chest impatiently, his legs unconsciously clamping down on the person in front of him. A hand stroked up from the side of his waist, making him shudder at every pass. The hand finally stopped at the front of his neck, his fingers nimbly unbuttoning his school uniform shirt, and he was so dizzy from the kiss that he didnt realize his clothes were almost stripped clean until he was carried into the bathtub. Lin Qinhe ripped off the bathrobe that had long been half wet on his body and then stepped into the bathtub. The small bathtub suddenly became cramped, and warm hot water was slowly poured into the bathtub. Tao Xi moved to the side to make room for Lin Qinhe, intending to soak with him, but he didnt know what happened, he was hugged by Lin Qinhe and pressed underneath as soon as he turned around. When the New Year was approaching, Tao Xi had been washed clean and lying on the bed, Lin Qinhe half held him and applied ointment to his inner thighs. Tao Xi leaned against Lin Qinhes arms and was so sleepy that he was about to fall asleep, letting Lin Qinhes hands fiddle and caress his leg. The skin that was originally fair and firm was a little red and swollen at the moment, as if it had been rubbed hard. The moment the clock struck, the distant Ferris wheel outside the floor-to-ceiling window flashed with brilliant light, bright fireworks shone on the citys night, and the tidal wave of people gathered in the riverside square shouted Happy New Year to the sky. Everyones face was full of anticipation for the New Year. Lin Qinhe clasped Tao Xis hand, leaned down and kissed Tao Xi, who had already closed his eyes, on the lips and whispered, Baby, happy new year. Happy New Year. Tao Xi wished from his sleep, and hooked the neck to kiss Lin Qinhe back, but the kiss landed on his chin. Lin Qinhe held the back of Tao Xis head and lowered his head to complete the kiss. With the arrival of the new year, people in the square went home with a smile after a big carnival. The author has something to say: Not an adult yet, can only have dry addiction1 CH 62 In the early morning of the first day of the New Year, Yang Zhengming picked up Tao Xi by car and went to a cemetery in the outskirts of the city. Last night Tao Xi told him that he wanted to sweep Fang Suis grave. The cemetery was amidst the mountains and rivers. It was still early, white fog caged the silent and unoccupied cemetery, Tao Xi followed Yang Zhengming for a long time before arriving at Fang Suis grave. This was the first time Tao Xi saw his mother, separated by a tomb. After seeing Fang Sui, Yang Zhengming walked a short distance away, leaving Tao Xi alone to speak with Fang Sui. Tao Xi placed a bouquet of white roses in front of the tombstone; the snow-white petals were still covered with dew. He squatted down and looked at the tombstone, reaching out to touch the engraved words on the cold stone tablet. The photo of Fang Sui on the tombstone was replaced shortly after, a pair of beautiful eyes gazing tenderly at everyone who came to see her. Those who came to see her grew older and older each year, but the person in the picture stopped forever at that flowery age. Tao Xi looked quietly for a long time, as if he was looking at his mother in the photo, and he said softly, Mom, Ive come to see you, can you see me? Only the sound of wind and birdsong could be heard faintly among the graveyard, and after another long time, he continued to say to the tombstone: Mom, Im home. Grandpa and Grandma are very nice to me, I had dinner with them last night and Grandma cooked a lot of food for me. Grandma said I like the rice wine she made as much as you do, so I drank an extra bowl, if only you could have it too. Im doing well now, I have someone I like very much, and he likes me very much, and I came here for him, and he took me home. Im learning painting with Grandpa Qiao. He always said that he has a very good female student. I know that it is you. In the future, I will make him as proud of me as you. Mom, thank you for always blessing me from heaven. I miss you so much and wish you happiness and joy in heaven. The fog gradually dispersed, and the light golden sunlight passed through the thin white fog. Tao Xi stood up in front of the tombstone, and finally slowly bent down towards the tombstone. On the way back, both father and son were a little silent. Yang Zhengming drove the car and did not turn on the music this time. Tao Xi kept looking out the window and after a long time without talking, he suddenly asked Yang Zhengming: Why Taoxi Bay? On the way here, he already knew through Yang Zhengming the reason why Fang Sui had left his family in the first place. A long-lost past, it couldnt be told with just a few words. He could only know that many years ago, Yang Zhengming was still Fang Zuqings proud disciple, and because his parents died early, he was taken care of by the teacher. He and the teachers daughter secretly developed an affection, this could be a happy story for all, but ended up like this. There was no hatred, no betrayal, everything was just a tear in the name of love, driving Fang Sui in the center of the whirlpool to desperation. She was pregnant with her lovers child, bent on giving him life but was not allowed by his parents. Even her best friend turned her away when she asked for help and finally her lover chose to retreat and run away. But why Taoxi Bay? Tao Xi asked Yang Zhengming this question, and the car gradually stopped at the side of the road. He saw Yang Zhengming hanging his head, fingers clenched tightly on the steering wheel, and the tendons and veins on the back of his hand were livid, as if he was enduring great pain and remorse. After a long time, he spoke, and his voice became hoarse: I used to like photography, and I took pictures of scenery in many places. She She liked the peach blossoms in Taoxi Bay the most, and I promised to accompany her to sketch there in the future. Those photographic works had also attracted the attention for Taoxi Bay for a short time, they were the thing he most proud of. Later, when they were anxiously looking around for Fang Sui, they searched all the places Fang Sui might go, but he never thought of this place. He forgot the look in Fang Suis longing eyes and his perfunctory promises at that time. Tao Xi remained silent after listening. He thought of his mother who was in Taoxi Bay back then, she must have been expecting Yang Zhengming to go there, but until the end of her life, she couldnt see the person she waited to take her home. Im sorry. Yang Zhengming suddenly said, his eyes were red as he looked at Tao Xi, I didnt go to Taoxi Bay to look for her, and then I didnt go to Taoxi Bay to look for you later. Tao Xi did not respond to Yang Zhengming. He pressed the car window down to look out the window, the cold breeze from the mountains came in, but his chest seemed to be blocked by something, making him stuffy and uncomfortable. He had heard too many apologies, but no amount of apologies could bring back his mother or the seventeen years he had missed out on. And Tao Xi, the name taken by Guo Ping at will, seemed to be a prophecy, and also seemed to be the branding of his life by a joke of fate. On the way back later, the father and son did not say a word. Tao Xi returned home alone and saw Lin Qinhe standing by the living room sofa looking at him, wearing a gray-blue sweater and holding a book in his hand. Obviously, he had been reading a book here before waiting for him to return. Tao Xi changed his shoes and slowly walked to Lin Qinhe, not saying anything and Lin Qinhe also did not ask anything, just reached out and hugged him into his arms. He buried his face in the soft warm sweater on Lin Qinhes shoulder and his whole body weight was leaning on Lin Qinhes arms. He took a deep breath, like the returning bird that finally hid in the nest after the wind and rain, feeling the dullness in his chest was relieved a little. Do you want to go out for a bike ride this afternoon? Lin Qinhe asked. Tao Xi nodded his head, he really did not want to stay at home. It was a beautiful day, a rare winter sun, they rode their bikes to many places in Wenhua City. Lin Qinhe took him to the elementary school and junior high school he had attended, and even to the kindergarten. When they arrived at the kindergarten, it was just in time for the children to be dismissed. Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe stood abruptly at the entrance, and a lot of parents who came to pick up their children stood beside them, frequently looking at these two eye-catching teenagers. A grandma stood beside Tao Xi and asked him, Are you here to pick up your younger brother or younger sister? He blurted out, Im here to pick up my younger brother, kindergarten older1 class. The grandmother got excited and said that her granddaughter was also in the older class, the name was Yunyun, and said that Tao Xi was so good-looking, so his younger brother must be good-looking too. She asked Tao Xi what his brothers name was, and maybe he knew her little granddaughter. Tao Xi thought about it, smiled a little and said, Its Lin Qinhe, did your granddaughter mention it when she came home? Lin Qinhe, who was sitting on the bicycle by the side, turned his head and glanced at Tao Xi. Oh, the name is so good, but I have never heard my granddaughter talk about such a child, ah. The grandmother lamented with great regret and asked Lin Qinhe beside Tao Xi, This handsome boy, are you also here to pick up your younger sibling? Lin Qinhe nodded his head with little expression and said, Pick up my younger brother. After saying that, he did not wait for the grandmother to continue to question, and continued seriously, in the kindergarten older class, called Tao Xi. Tao Xi was so happy that he smiled at the grandmother and said, Our brothers are in the same class. Its great, ah. The elder brothers have such a good relationship, and the younger brothers can also grow up together and have each other as companions. After the grandmother sighing enviously, she suddenly heard her granddaughter call herself and rushed to pick her up. The two hurriedly took the opportunity to ride away. On the way, Tao Xi still could not help laughing, so much that Lin Qinhe looked at him several times. He didnt know where his mind jumped at once and suddenly asked Lin Qinhe. Hey, youre so smart, why dont you skip a grade? He thought that with Lin Qinhes IQ, it would not be a problem to jump four or five grades. Lin Qinhe didnt keep up with Tao Xis jumpy thinking and said, A teacher suggested it in elementary school, but my mother didnt agree. Fortunately, you didnt skip the grade. Tao Xi tsked and looked into Lin Qinhes eyes with a bright smile. Otherwise, how can I go to the kindergarten class with you? Lin Qinhe smiled when he heard the words, thinking that fortunately, Tao Xi didnt continue to ask why Luo Zhengyin didnt agree with him skipping grades. In the next second, Tao Xi suddenly looked serious and said to Lin Qinhe, After a while, when your mother is better, Ill go visit her. He knew that Luo Zhengyin was in a sanatorium for treatment and recuperation, he knew that she probably had relapsed because of learning about his birth. Lin Qinhes fingers holding the handlebars of his bicycle curled up, he didnt expect Tao Xi would take the initiative to ask to see Luo Zhengyin. After a few seconds of silence, he finally said, Okay, she also wants to see you. It was only at dusk that the two men slowly rode their bikes along the riverside greenway toward home. Tao Xi could not ride any longer, his two feet were pedaling very hard, but he saw that Lin Qinhe was still riding smoothly and easily. He was a little unconvinced, pedaling a few feet harder to catch up, slightly panting and said to Lin Qinhe: I will take you to Taoxi Bay to climb the mountain in the future, you will definitely not be as good as I am. Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis face that was a little red from sweat, the corners of his lips lifted slightly and said, Physical strength doesnt change because of different places. Tao Xi stopped his bike, one leg propped up on the spot, always feeling that Lin Qinhe meant something when he said this, but for a while he couldnt figure out what Lin Qinhe was referring to. At this point, Lin Qinhe, who had already ridden some distance away, stopped and turned his bike to look over, waiting for him with his back facing a river of glistening twilight. Tao Xi looked at that image for a few seconds before pedaling a few times harder and riding up next to Lin Qinhe. The end of the New Years Day holiday meant that there would be no other long holidays before the final exams, which would be followed by another ranking and class placement. Even the students in the grade two Class 1 of Wenhua No. 1 High School were inevitably nervous about the final exams. Hence, Tao Xi also devoted himself to preparing for the exam. Bi Chengfei shared an exclusive gossip with Tao Xi, saying that Xu Ziqi and Yang Duole from Class 2 had dropped out of school. From what his sister-in-law Bi Aoxue told him, they even got a mark on their records, and it was estimated that it would follow them for the rest of their lives, asking them if they had anything to do with the CAC competition. Tao Xi only said that he didnt know, but Bi Chengfei was curious. He clearly saw Yang Duoles dad come and send something to Tao Xi several times, but in the end, he did not settle with Tao Xi? Not long after, the final results of the CAC competition came out. Tao Xi lived up to the expectations and won the first prize in the country, it was the best result after the storm. He used the prize money to invite his classmates to dinner over the weekend to thank them for their support. A group of high school students, who were going crazy with revision, had a great time eating and drinking and then spent the night in a karaoke bar. The boys had no parents or teachers to control them, so they ordered more than 30 bottles of beer alone. Tao Xi wanted to drink too, but Lin Qinhe didnt allow him to, so he shoved a bottle of peach soda into his hand, causing him to sigh. The private room was heated well, and the rotating coloured lights have been turned on by someone. The colorful halo was dazzling. The restless air mixed with the smell of beer and juice, and the noisy laughter of young people was noisy and vivid. Tao Xi was in a trance in this noisy scene, remembering that at this time last year he should have been wrapped in an old cotton-padded coat that had no more cotton. In the corridor outside the dormitory of the ten-person room, a person with a flashlight shook his teeth with a cold, catching up on his homework from Wenhua No.1 live broadcast class. The idea that supported him at that time was simple, that was, the moon on the live screen thousands of miles away. At this moment, he looked at the classmates of Wenhua No. 1 High School who were dancing in front of him, and at the handsome young man beside him. He was wearing a pair of wireless headphones, looking down at the tablet in his hands amidst the dappled sound, his long fingers writing something on the tablet, as if he was in a library instead of a karaoke bar. Tao Xi couldnt help but put his head over, and saw that it was his TOEFL English essay that he was forced to write last night by Lin Qinhe. Next to it were dense red correction notes, the number of words almost catching up with the main text. Teacher Lin, you might as well write me a new one. Tao Xi said with difficulty. Lin Qinhe was blocked from view by Tao Xis head. He raised his hand and cupped Tao Xis chin and pushed it a little to the side, continuing to annotate the last sentence, his tone was somewhat serious: The model essay has been written, you can refer to it. ? As soon as Tao Xi was about to say something, he was suddenly lifted from the sofa to the bar by Bi Chengfei and the class monitor. There was also a microphone in his hand that had just been shoved by Bi Chengfei, and the others shouted loudly to make him sing, Sing one! Sing one! Tao Xi was in a good mood, and he ordered a song to sing, an old English song, Fly Me to the Moon, which he had heard before and liked so much that he wrote it down. He sang sloppily, relying on the good and simple tune. No one made funny booze, which made him very satisfied. Lin Qinhe finally stopped looking at the essay. His normally cold face was half hidden in the dim light, his gaze falling on him through the glittering coloured light, focused and soft. After singing, Tao Xi sat back next to Lin Qinhe. Just as he was about to ask how he was singing, he saw Lin Qinhe was still writing on the tablet. Teacher Lin, if you correct homework at my party again, Ill confiscate your tablet. Tao Xi feigned an anger and once again went over to look, but saw that on the tablet was not his broken essay, but a new document with a beautiful handwritten English sentence. You are all I long for. All I worship and adore. It was the words of the song he had just sung, and the next line was Lin Qinhe handed the tablet to him. Looking at him from the corner of his eyes, he said casually: Want to give it to you. Tao Xi took the tablet and looked at the English lyrics on it, blushing a little. After a long night of fussing and sending a group of drunks to their cars, Tao Xi went home with Lin Qinhe. He was still excited, humming the song he sang all the way, and didnt even stop when he crawled into bed after showering, nestling in Lin Qinhes arms and taking out his phone to calculate his prize money. The prize money for the first place was very generous, there was still a lot left. Tao Xi said in every detail what he wanted to buy for his family and Lin Qinhe, what to buy for his grandfather and grandmother, and what to buy for his teacher Qiao Henian Lin Qinhe embraced Tao Xi with one arm and flipped through the book with the other hand, occasionally responding with a few sounds. After counting, Tao Xi became quiet suddenly, seeming to be thinking about something. Seeing Tao Xis silence, Lin Qinhe looked down at Tao Xis phone screen and found that he was staring at the weather in Wenhua City in a daze. It said that the cold wave was coming in the next few days and it was going to be cold and snowy. He raised his hand and pinched Tao Xis earlobe, asking, What are you thinking about? Tao Xi came back to his senses, turned around and sat on Lin Qinhes lap, saying: I was thinking about my sister, I dont know if she really received the things I bought for her last time. Last time there was also a cold wave, he bought a bunch of things for keeping warm in winter and sent it to Guo Ping, both for Guo Ping and Tao Le. He didnt know that Guo Ping was sick at that time. Lin Qinhe knew that Tao Xi was thinking about more than his sister Tao Le, he reached out and wrapped his arm around Tao Xis waist, brought it a little closer to his arms, and asked tentatively, Do you want to go to Hannan Hospital? The last time he met Tao Jian at the hospital, Tao Jian asked Tao Xi to visit Guo Ping sometime. Tao Xi never went, but Lin Qinhe knew that Tao Xi always had this matter in his heart. Tao Xi put his forehead against Lin Qinhes shoulder, his fingers grabbed a piece of Lin Qinhes pajamas, smothered for a while and said, I do not want to go see her, I just think that some things may need a closure. Lin Qinhe wrapped Tao Xis fingers holding his pajamas into his palm and said to him, Go and see. No matter how far the road was in the future, there was no need to look back. CH 63 Tao Xi did not let Lin Qinhe accompany him the next day. He went to Hannan Hospital alone against the cold wind, bought some fruits like last time, and went straight to Guo Pings ward. Tao Jian was not there, only Guo Ping was in the ward. Tao Xi barely recognized the woman who had tubes all over her body on the bed. Her face was so swollen that he couldnt see what she used to look like. When she heard the sound of the door, she looked over to the door very slowly, as if it took a lot of effort to recognize who was coming. Guo Pings yellow and swollen face couldnt make out any expressions. She opened her mouth hard and called out Tao Xi. Tao Xi raised his foot and walked towards the hospital bed, without calling any name. They didnt really have much to talk about. Or rather, since he knew the truth, he didnt talk much to Guo Ping, and Guo Ping had become increasingly silent to him since then. Only with a pair of eyes full of sadness occasionally look at him, and he was extremely disgusted with this look. Now he saw a little smile in Guo Pings more cloudy eyes as she said, You came to see me. I came for Tao Le. Tao Xi said with little tone, placing the fruit in his hand on the bedside table. Guo Ping nodded softly when she heard this, saying: Tao Le is at her grandmothers house, she wanted to come with me to see you in Wenhua City, I didnt let her come, let her study well at school. I will let her transfer to study here. Tao Xi said, Yang Zhengming promised to help him with this favor and find a good junior high school, and Tao Le would transfer in the next semester. Guo Ping hadnt spoken for a long time, and when she spoke again, her voice became much lower: She is blessed to have a brother like you. After she finished speaking, she lifted the hand with the needle, pointed to the drawer of the bedside table with some difficulty, and said, There is a wooden box in the first drawer. Take it out and take a look. Tao Xi took out the narrow, palm-length wooden box from the drawer. The wooden box should be made of leftover bits and pieces; it was rough and old. He opened the wooden box, and inside was a knot made of red rope. The hands weaving it were obviously a bit clumsy; the knot was not very smooth and beautiful. Tao Xi stared at the string of peace knots for a few seconds, then suddenly raised his head to look at Guo Ping. Your mother, ah, had long and slender hands, and she was so good at drawing, but I dont know why she was so slow at learning how to knit ropes. I taught her for a long, long time before she finished knitting this string of peace knots. Guo Ping looked at the peace knot in Tao Xis hand, and seemed to be lost in memory: The first time I saw her, I thought how could there be such a good-looking person, with eyes always containing water and speaking warmly and softly. She came to my door and asked me if she could stay at my house. I saw that she was pregnant with a child, thinking that I was also pregnant with a child and the two of us could be companions so I agreed to her. She didnt worry at all. She gave a large sum of money as soon as she moved in, and didnt want to think about if I lied to her. At that time, the other daughter-in-laws in the village envied me, saying that I was so lucky to have met a nobleman from a big city. I thought so too. I have been in Taoxi Bay all my life and I have never seen anything in the world. Your mother is the most powerful person I know. I dont even dare to think of the word friend, but she really regards me as a friend Tao Xi heard the word friend and his breathe was stagnant, he couldnt listen anymore, and asked the question he most wanted to ask in a cold voice: She treated you as a friend, why would you do that? She trusted you so much, but you left behind the child she gave her life in exchange for, and handed your own child to her relatives. Guo Ping fell silent, slowly moving her eyes away from the string of peace knots, looking out of focus at the IV drip hanging on the head of the bed. She lowered her voice and continued weakly: I didnt study much. Your mother had a lot of things I dont understand. Sometimes I didnt understand what she said or painted. The only thing I could understand about her is her love for you. She gave you a good name, drew you a picture, wrote a letter, and said that she would take you to many places in the future and teach you how to draw. At that time I suddenly thought, what can I give my children? Ive never thought about this kind of problem before. Our children were all born and raised in the village and didnt study much. They grew up just like me, got married, gave birth to children, and went on like this one generation after another Your mother let me know that as a parent, I still have to consider so much for the children I wonder if I have to leave something for my child, but that day they said my child was weak and would not live long at all. I am not willing, ah. How can I be willing, I have not even thought about what to give him in the future Maybe its this point of reluctance. That day your father and the others came to Taoxi Bay to pick up the mother and the son. I gave them my child. At that time, I thought, this was the only thing I could give him, and the red string I made myself Is that your thing? Tao Xi interrupted the questioning. He felt that there was no need to listen further. There was no hidden feeling he had imagined. Everything was just a selfish use of the so-called motherly love, giving the fate of others as a gift to her children. He got up from the chair, wanted to turn around and leave when he saw Guo Ping struggling to stretch out her hand to him and her voice was completely weakened: Tao Xi, Im sorry, I stole what your mother gave you. I know you hate me and wont forgive me. Im going to go to hell soon, and I wont be able to see your mother even after I die. If you go to see her in the future, can you help me tell her that Im sorry Tao Xi looked indifferently at the hand with the needle that stretched towards him. There were countless times when he longed for that hand to hold his hand to pick him up and take him home from school, just like she held Tao Le. He did not move, and asked indifferently: You know I wont forgive you, so why do you expect forgiveness from my mother? Guo Pings hand gradually dropped, her eyes half closed, and her lips moved as if to say something, but no one could hear it clearly except for herself. Tao Xi looked down at the woman on the hospital bed, the mother he once looked forward to being loved by her, but later hated and loathed. He finally did not say any more sharp words, only leaving a sentence: You get well, Tao Le is still waiting for you at home. Then, clutching the string of peace knots, he turned and walked out of the ward. He originally wanted to ask Guo Ping why he did not treat him a little better out of guilt over the years, but there was no point in asking. He came to see Guo Pings side, only to break the mother-son fate of the past ten years. From then on, they had no relationship anymore. Tao Xi walked out of the tall building of the inpatient department. It was about ten in the morning, the last sunny day before the cold wave, and the sun was shining from the southeast. He raised his hand to cover his eyes, the green light was on on the street outside the hospital, and he followed the crowd to the other side of the street. The cold wave in Wenhua City came raging. The weather forecast said there would be heavy snow tomorrow, but in fact it started to fall in the middle of the night. Overnight, the whole city was covered with heavy snow, only waiting for people to wake up and sigh with surprise. The next day, Tao Xi woke up and learned about Guo Pings jump from a building through Lin Qinhe. Guo Ping jumped off the tall building of the inpatient department in the early morning. She should have taken a lot of effort to pull out the tube and needle from her body. Tao Jian slept very hard on the guardian bed beside her and didnt notice it. Although the ground had been covered with a layer of snow, there was no chance of surviving from jumping from that height. Hospitals were unable to avoid the death of patients who jump off buildings every year. After all, not everyone could bear the pain and suffering, so some people choose to be relieved once and for all. Tao Xi knew that Guo Ping chose to die, not because of torture. She didnt come to Wenhua to treat the illness, but just wanted to meet her child before she died. But Yang Duole never went to see Guo Ping from beginning to end. Guo Ping gave Yang Duole the birth and changed the fate of others, and now she gave Yang Duole the only thing she had, her death. Lin Qinhe lowered his head to look at the look on Tao Xis face. Tao Xi was surprised at the first moment he learned about it, but his expression remained calm afterwards, as if it were not unexpected and there was no sadness. He didnt say anything but walked to the wool carpet by the window and sat down, quietly watching the heavy snow outside the floor-to-ceiling window. Seventeen years ago, two children born on a snowy night were replaced by others. Since then, life had gone wrong and fate had been reversed. Seventeen years later, everything gradually returned to the right track, and the person who changed the fates ended her life in the same heavy snow. It seemed that others would often sigh with a sentence of karma, but the seventeen years of destiny reversal between the wrong love, regret, pain, regret, resentmentit wasnt a matter of karma. And the living people have to patch up the cracks after the farce of fate ends. Tao Xi seemed to have thought a lot, but also seemed to have thought nothing. Most of the memories of the past seventeen years include Guo Ping. After all, she was the person whom he called mother for fifteen years, but at the end of the day, it seemed that there wasnt much to recall, those once longed for, and later loathed, all seemed to dissipate in the snow that flew in front of him. The last picture in his mind was neither Guo Ping nor himself. Lin Qinhe walked to Tao Xi and sat down. He held his hand and found that it was cold. After a long time, Tao Xi turned to look at him and said softly: My sister doesnt have a mother anymore. Lin Qinhe raised his hand and wiped the corner of Tao Xis eyes with his thumb, hugged him into his arms and warmed the hand of the person in his arms with his own palm as he said to him, She still has these two brothers. Tao Xi did not participate in Guo Pings funeral. After the cremation in Wenhua City, Tao Jian took away a box of ashes, and later Tao Xi heard that Tao Jian found Yang Duole somewhere. The father and son had a serious conflict. Yang Duole was probably beaten by Tao Jian, he followed Tao Jian back to Taoxi Bay. Fang Zuqing and Ye Yurong only sighed a sentence of sin after they knew about Guo Ping. At first, the two old men hated and wanted to sue Guo Ping, but when they learned of Guo Pings illness, they gave up temporarily. Now that person was dead and gone, there was no place to pursue more hate. Tao Xi asked the teacher of Qingshui County Junior High School to help and called Tao Le. The little girl cried out of breath on the other end of the phone. Accepting that her mothers suicide overnight, and even her brother was not her own biological brother, it was too cruel for a girl of this age. Brother, are you not coming back anymore? Tao Le asked helplessly while crying, she paused before saying, I saw that person. He hates me and I hate him. I dont want to recognize him as my brother. Tao Xi couldnt imagine how Yang Duole would get along with Tao Le. He said to Tao Le, I wont be back, but Im still your brother and youre my sister. Tao Le cried for a long time. Tao Xi calmed Tao Le for a long time, clarified to her about the transfer from next semester, and told her to take medicine several times before hanging up the phone. After dealing with these matters, Tao Xi went to Fang Suis tomb once with Lin Qinhe. He tied the string of peace knots that Fang Sui wove for him seventeen years ago on his wrist, along with the string of turquoise that Lin Qinhe gave him. These were the two most important people in his life and blessings to him. On the way down the hill after sweeping the tomb, Tao Xi put his head in front of Lin Qinhe and stared into Lin Qinhes eyes: Did you just quietly say something to my mother? When he was cleaning the residual snow next to the tombstone, he saw Lin Qinhe look at Fang Suis tombstone seriously and solemnly for a long time. Lin Qinhe raised his hand from his white down jackets pocket and put a white hat on Tao Xi, saying: You told her so much about me, of course I have to say it too. Tao Xis whole head was put in his hat. He was stunned. Remembering that he said a bunch of words as if he had brought his boyfriend to the door, he was a bit embarrassed, so he grabbed Lin Qinhes arm and asked: What did you say? Did not say anything bad about me, right? Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xis face surrounded by a circle of white fluff, and raised his eyebrows: What bad thing can I say about you? Tao Xi felt that the white fluff made his face itchy, so threw the hat to the back, and nodded in agreement: Yes, I dont know what shortcomings I have. After he finished speaking, he saw Lin Qinhe smile at the corner of his mouth. Realizing that Lin Qinhe was changing the subject, he hurriedly pulled it back and asked, So what did you say? Lin Qinhe put the hat on again, and said, I didnt say anything, just thank your mother for giving birth to you. Oh, thanking that. Tao Xi followed Lin Qinhe and continued down the mountain. As soon as the wind blew the circle of white hairs on his face, he realized that the hat was on his head again. Do you like this hat so much? It looks cute. Oh. Tao Xi was embarrassed again, and jumped forward a few steps, but didnt take off his hat. Lin Qinhe casted a glance back. The cemetery was silent amidst the remnants of green mountains and snow. Fang Suis tomb could no longer be seen clearly, but it still seemed to be watching them tenderly. The author has something to say: Lin Qinhes relationship with Fang Sui is very complicated CH 64 The end of this semester came quickly. Sitting in the examination room of Wenhua No. 1 High School again, Tao Xi felt that he was more stable than the last midterm exam, his heart was steady and his hands were steady. On the day after the exam, Yang Zhengming took him back to his grandfathers house. Grandma made a special table of dishes. The family gathered to celebrate the end of his exam and usher in the winter vacation. The results came out on the third day after the exam. Tao Xi progressed from 42 to 21 in the mid-term exam. Except for Lin Qinhe, the unbeatable first place, this result had greatly stimulated a class of students. After all, a student who had only transferred from Qingshui County for half a year had almost rushed into the top 20. Given a little more time, wouldnt he be shoulder-to-shoulder with Lin Qin He? Tao Xi was quite satisfied with this result, but before he had time to celebrate with Lin Qinhe, he was taken back to his grandparents house by Yang Zhengming. His grandmother made a bigger table of dishes to celebrate his big progress in the final exams, and the three adults also gave him gifts for the final exams. Tao Xi was not very polite, he accepted them all and stayed at his grandparents house all night. He understood that his relatives were trying to build a home for him. Perhaps, the affection was in such a meal, a vegetable, a dish, accumulating sand into a tower. Tao Xi returned to his home with Lin Qinhe with a bunch of gifts the next day. Regarding his living with Lin Qinhe, the two elderly people didnt say anything. It might be that Yang Zhengming had already told them in advance, but he didnt know how he said it. When he came home, Lin Qinhe had also just returned from seeing Luo Zhengyin at the sanatorium. Is Auntie Luo feeling better? Tao Xi sat on the carpet with his legs crossed, holding a gift box, and asked Lin Qinhe who was sitting on the sofa. Lin Qinhe handed the scissors on the coffee table to Tao Xi and said, Better, she can be discharged from the hospital tomorrow. Tao Xi sighed with relief as he took the scissors to cut the ribbon on the gift box, and he suddenly heard Lin Qinhe say, My mother wants to see you tomorrow. Sure, Im going to visit your mother too. Tao Xi put down the scissors and looked at Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe looked calm, but he saw the hesitation in Lin Qinhes eyes. Tao Xi moved closer to Lin Qinhe, rested his chin on Lin Qinhes knee. Tilting his head, he asked: Are you worried about something? Lin Qinhe looked down into Tao Xis eyes, stroked the lashes at the end of his eyes with his thumbs, and whispered, Nothing. Tao Xi felt itchy at the end of his eyes, and blinked quickly. The tail of his eyelashes swept across Lin Qinhes fingertips, and the finger quickly moved away. In fact, he knew what Lin Qinhe was worried about. He not only wanted to go see Luo Zhengyin, but also to confirm one of his suspicions, and to say something to Luo Zhengyin. The next day, Tao Xi bought some gifts for visiting, and followed Lin Qinhe into the villa where Luo Zhengyin lived, the same place where Lin Qinhe and Yang Duole once lived. The interior decoration of the villa was full of artistic atmosphere, but it also looked very deserted. The first thing Tao Xi saw was an oil painting hanging on the wall of the living room. In the painting was a young girl wearing a white dress, sitting in a field of purple flowers, her smiling eyes were innocent and affectionate. Tao Xi recognized that it was her mother Fang Suis self-portrait. The nurse who took care of Luo Zhengyin came down and said to Tao Xi, Madam has just woken up, please go up. Lin Qinhe said to Tao Xi, Ill wait for you in the living room. He knew that Luo Zhengyin wanted to speak with Tao Xi alone. Tao Xi nodded and was just about to turn around to go when Lin Qinhe held his wrist and told him, If she is not in good condition, you can call me up. Tao Xi agreed and followed the nurse to the second floor. On the way, he found that not only the painting in the living room, but there were also many traces of Fang Sui in the entire villa; photos, oil paintings, and other relics of Fang Suis life. When the door opened, Tao Xi smelled a faint smell of medicine before he even walked in. The heavy blackout curtains were not opened, and only a floor lamp was lit in the corner of the room. In the dim light, Tao Xi saw Luo Zhengyin leaning against the bed and almost didnt recognize that this was the elegant female pianist. Luo Zhengyin looked very frail, her pale face looked sickly, her dull eyes brightened slightly after seeing him coming in and with some difficulty she showed a little smile and said, Tao Xi, come and sit down. Tao Xi politely greeted Aunt Luo, and sat down on the chair beside Luo Zhengyins bed. Luo Zhengyin didnt say anything else, she just quietly gazed at the teenager in front of her, her eyes seemed to be empty but at the same time filled with something. Tao Xi was a little uncomfortable by Luo Zhengyins look. He wanted to say something to break the silence, but he saw Luo Zhengyin suddenly start to shed tears, silent and painful. He panicked and gave Luo Zhengyin a tissue, but Luo Zhengyin didnt take them. She covered her face with her hands and quietly shed tears, as if the tears couldnt end, and only after a long time did she say to him, Im sorry, Im not completely well, sometimes I cant control my emotions. Tao Xi said it was okay, he knew Luo Zhengyins depression was serious, but didnt know how to persuade her. After crying, Luo Zhengyin seemed to have calmed down a bit. She lifted her head to look at Tao Xi again, and after looking for a long time, she smiled and said, You really look like Ah Sui. Tao Xi then cautiously followed her words and asked, What kind of person is my mother? Luo Zhengyins gaze still fell on his face, as if it fell on a person a long time ago through him. She talked a lot intermittently, mostly about the things that Fang Sui and her grew up with. Those times should be very happy, because when Luo Zhengyin said it, she always had a slight smile on his face. Tao Xi listened very carefully, and he confirmed his suspicions that Luo Zhengyin did like Fang Sui, in the same way that he and Lin Qinhe did. It was just that when Luo Zhengyin spoke about Fang Suis pregnancy, her emotions suddenly broke down again, and she again covered her face and cried, tears flowing down from her fingers, like a confessor on her knees. Tao Xi comforted him helplessly, but Luo Zhengyin suddenly grabbed his hand, like a drowning man clutching the wooden board, saying Im sorry over and over again. Auntie Luo, you are not sorry for me. Tao Xi frowned, his hand that was scratched was a bit painful. But Luo Zhengyin shook her head, still clutching Tao Xis hand hard, crying incoherently, No, Im the one whos sorry to ASui, Im the one whos sorry to ASuis son, its my fault, Tao Xi, Im sorry, Im sorry Tao Xi looked at Luo Zhengyin who was immersed in painful emotions, his heart was very uncomfortable. After finally waiting for her to calm down a bit, he planned to talk about other topics to divert Luo Zhengyins attention, but Luo Zhengyin looked up at him again, and light appeared in her tear-filled eyes at first, as if she had finally found a way to redeem herself, she said with some excitement. Tao Xi, I will make it up to you, I will make up for what I owe you in the past ten years, you can treat me as your mother, okay? Okay? She looked at Tao Xi almost pleadingly, as if she would collapse if Tao Xi did not promise her. There was only a deep sigh left in Tao Xis heart. For Luo Zhengyin, the only one who could save her from her despair and guilt was Fang Suis child. It was once Yang Duole, but now it is him. He shook his head, did not agree to Luo Zhengyin, but said to Luo Zhengyin in a soft tone as much as possible. Auntie Luo, I know you feel indebted to me because of my mother. He paused and continued, But what you owe is not me, and I am not your child. Luo Zhengyin didnt seem to understand what he meant and said eagerly, It doesnt matter, I will treat you as if you were my own child. ASuis child is my child. She didnt know what suddenly came to her mind again, she grabbed Tao Xis hand a little tighter and pleaded bitterly, Tao Xi, move over here, you can live here with Qinhe, you can treat him as your brother, we are all your relatives, he will take care of you with me, okay? Tao Xi looked at the pale and sick woman in front of him, and there was a sudden surge of sorrow. He did not answer Luo Zhengyins question, but only asked softly: Aunt Luo, what is Qinhe to you? Luo Zhengyin stared at him blankly, as if she didnt understand what he was saying. Tao Xi took a deep breath, hesitated for a moment, but still said what he wanted to say to Luo Zhengyin: Qinhe is your child, just like I am my mothers child. He is not a continuation of your feelings for my mother, nor is he your foil to make up for me. It has never been me that you need to make up for over the past ten years. Its Qinhe, do you know? He stared at Luo Zhengyin, but Luo Zhengyin fell silent under his gaze, and the hand that grabbed him suddenly trembled and shrank back as if it had touched something sharp. Tao Xi knew that Luo Zhengyin was avoiding this question, so he held Luo Zhengyins cold hand back, handed her the warmth of his own hand, looked into Luo Zhengyins eyes, and said in a slower tone. You are my mothers best friend, my mother in heaven must not want to see you living in guilt for her for the rest of your life. She would want you to have a happy family and live a happy and joyful life for yourself, just like you used to do when you were with her. Hearing this sentence, Luo Zhengyins throat choked violently, her head hung down, tears falling one by one on the quilt. She choked out, But I have no way to There was no way to break free from despair, only to live in regret day after day. Tao Xi sighed softly. Mother Luo. Luo Zhengyin suddenly raised her head, her eyes were blurred, she blinked hard and saw the teenager in front of her smiling faintly at her as he said: Thank you for being willing to be my mom, its just that I hope that I can have a healthy and happy mom with Qinhe, okay? The floor lamp cast a warm yellow light, illuminating this corner of the bed lightly, and after Luo Zhengyin cried for a long time, Tao Xi finally heard her answer, Yes. He kept holding Luo Zhengyins hand until she fell asleep again, and only then did he walk out of the room. Tao Xi stood alone in the corridor, leaning against the wall, looking at the picture of Fang Sui on the wall. Lin Qinhe grew up living in such an environment that missed Fang Sui everywhere. Facing a mother whose heart and eyes were full of other peoples children, would he also loathe Fang Sui and her child? But in the end, he ended up with Fang Suis real child by mistake. He couldnt tell what he felt in his heart, but he remembered what the old man at the wonton stand said to him that day. That night in the canopy of the wonton stall, Tao Xi took advantage of the fact that Lin Qinhe had gone out to buy a barbecue and asked the old man about the incident when Lin Qinhe ran away from home when he was six years old, and the old man seemed to trust him and told him everything. In the evening more than ten years ago, a beautiful-looking child was hanging around Old Suns stall, and he looked pitiful, so he greeted the child and sat him down on a simple wooden stool and cooked him a bowl of wontons to eat. The child was obviously hungry, but ate slowly, looking across the intersection as he ate, as if he was waiting for someone. Old Sun had nothing to do, so he crossed his legs and asked the child why he had run out alone, and whether he had quarreled with his parents. The child shook his head, buried his head and drank the soup bit by bit without talking. Old Sun had seen many children who had fought with their parents and threatened to run away from home. Most of them didnt get more than two miles away before they went back on their own, crying, so he persuaded them, saying. Mom and dad scold you and beat you occasionally, all for your own good, but they all like you best. The child was silent for a while and said in a very calm tone, My mother does not like me. When he spoke, he looked serious and sad. Old Sun couldnt help but be stunned. He smashed his mouth and said, What kind of a mother doesnt like her own child. Little friend, dont think so. Your mother cant find you now. I dont know how anxious she is. The child stopped talking, and Old Sun wondered whether to call the police. When he was about to call, he saw his niece rushing over anxiously. When she saw the child eating wontons at the wooden table, she was relieved and immediately hugged the child and wiped her tears. It turned out that Old Suns niece was working as a nanny for someone in the university staff building, and the child was the son of the family. Old Sun couldnt help but ask his niece what had happened. Perhaps it was because she had a long-standing grievance and when she finally got the chance to air it, her niece rambled on for nearly twenty minutes. Hearing from her, this childs mother was a pianist, and she couldnt live in a well-groomed villa. She moved with her children to the university professors building where she lived as a child and hired her niece, who lived nearby, as a nanny. The professors building was already old. When the niece went out to buy things that afternoon, a circuit caught fire downstairs, and the fire went straight upstairs. Fortunately, during the day, the few residents in the building quickly evacuated. When her niece returned, the fire engine and ambulance had just arrived. She anxiously searched for her employer; the mother and son, and heard from neighbors that the lady had come down with her son in her arms, but had fainted again because of nervousness. She soon found the unconscious young lady in the ambulance, clutching a painting in her hand, and sitting beside her was a crying little boy who was being comforted by a nurse. The niece just breathed a sigh of relief when she suddenly realized that the boy was not the ladys own child, but a child named Lele who often came to play. Her heart was instantly in her throat, and she didnt have time to ask. She hurried to tell the firefighter that there might be a boy who hadnt come down on the fourth floor. The firefighter quickly hugged a little boy with a black and gray face down. She saw the child crying and shouting to the firefighter, my mother and brother were still on it, please help my mother. She looked away and didnt hold back the tears that instantly fell. He took a nap in the room alone and woken up by the smoke. He went to look for his mother, thinking that his mother and brother were locked in the room, knocking on the door desperately and calling to his mother, how could he know that his mother had already carried someone elses child down, and she also brought a useless painting, just forgetting her own son! The niece didnt dare let the child hear her again, so she complained to Old Sun in a whisper with red eyes: I dont know what shes thinking, she treats her children badly and treats other peoples son like a treasure. I heard she has some kind of depression, but even if shes mentally ill, even if her son has only been with her for a short time, she shouldnt treat her own children like this! After listening with a complicated expression on his face, Old Sun only sighed. He couldnt say anything about other peoples affairs. He glanced at the child in the corner who was holding a bowl and drinking soup in his hands, walked over and asked the child: still eat or not? Grandpa will give you another bowl of wontons. The child shook his head and said politely, Thank you, grandpa, no need. Old Sun half squatted down and touched the childs head. After thinking for a while, he then said to him kindly: People forget things when theyre sick, and when your mother is sick, she may forget you occasionally, but its not because she doesnt like you. The child dropped his long eyelashes and did not say anything Old Sun also knew that the reason he gave was too far-fetched. After all, the mother did not forget the children of other families. It was hard for him to see the child like this, so he thought about it and continued. Besides, besides your mother, there will be many other people who like you. The child then raised his eyes to look at him and asked seriously: Will you like me the most like my mother likes didi*?1 He used the word most with some emphasis, obviously he yearned for this word very much. Like all children, he always wanted the best, the biggest, and the most. Old Sun was stunned, and realized that this younger brother was probably the child carried down by his mother, and he could not help asking, Your mother likes didi, so do you hate the brother? The niece was desperately making eyes at the side, as if she was unhappy with Old Sun for raising this somewhat cruel question. The child was silent for a while and slowly shook his head: Didi can make mother happy, so mother likes didi the most. Old Suns heart was mixed, he sighed lightly. Picking up the child from the stool and raising it above his head, he smiled and teased the child with an exaggerated tone, saying. Its okay, little friend, in the future, there will also be people in the world who love you most, most, and most! The childs amber-like eyes lit up and asked softly, When will that happen? When you grow up, there will be one. Old Sun smiled as he replied. He also had grandchildren himself, and usually liked to play with children. The niece on the side could not help complaining: Uncle, he is still young, dont talk about it. But the child was obviously amused by Old Sun Old Sun finally watched the niece walk away with the child by the hand. After that, the childs house moved away from the university professor building, and the niece did not work as a nanny for Madam anymore, but she would occasionally talk about the beautiful child when she came over, worrying that he would be wronged at home. What Old Sun didnt expect was that, after that, the child would follow the road and come over to eat a bowl of wontons. He no longer asked those childish questions and never came alone, occasionally bringing back two bowls of wontons. At that time, Tao Xis eyes turned red after listening to Old Sun. He had always been faintly aware that Luo Zhengyin had placed too much emphasis on Yang Duole and of her polite and cold treatment towards Lin Qinhe, but he had never imagined that Lin Qinhe had been treated in this way when he was with Luo Zhengyin since he was a child. He knew that Luo Zhengyin was sick, but he still couldnt understand. Nor did he dare to imagine that if he had lived beside Lin Qinhe since he was young, would he also completely take away the mothers love that belonged to Lin Qinhe? In the face of the indulgence of those relatives, would he really not become like Yang Duole? Tao Xi didnt dare to think about these problems. He patted his face with his hand, adjusted his expression, and walked downstairs in a mixed mood. On the stairs, he saw Lin Qinhe waiting for him in the living room alone. Hearing his footsteps, he raised his head and looked at him, showing a very gentle smile. At that moment, Tao Xi seemed to see the child who waited for his mother to find him at the wonton stand many years ago. Suddenly his nose became sore, he walked quickly to Lin Qinhe, took his hand, and held it tightly. Lin Qinhe sensed Tao Xis emotions, lowered his head slightly, looked into his eyes and asked softly: Whats wrong? Did my mother say something to you? Tao Xi didnt say anything, just leaned his forehead on Lin Qinhes shoulder, rubbed his neck and asked an inexplicable question, Do you know who I am? Lin Qinhe was taken aback for a moment, and subconsciously replied with an unintentional answer: You are Tao Xi. Tao Xi shook his head. Lin Qinhe came back and thought that Tao Xi was flirting coquettishly with him, so he smiled and said, Its my baby. Tao Xi did not hold back his joy. He stood on tiptoe, pressed close to Lin Qinhes ear, and solemnly said in a low voice: Little friend Lin Qinhe, I am the person who loves you the most, the most, and the most in the world. After Tao Xi finished speaking, Lin Qinhe didnt respond. He only stared at him, as if completely stunned. The amber pupils reflected the figure in front of him, like a deep pool reflecting the moon. He reached out and poked Lin Qinhes waist and asked, Are you honored Before the question was finished he was suddenly kissed by Lin Qinhe, his lips and tongue met. From gentle and loving to searing and hot, but the person kissing him looked almost pious, as if someone who walked through the desert for several days kissing the Crescent Lake,2 urgently drawing water from it. I am very honored. T/N: I feel sad for these three people who were raised by these irresponsible and selfish adults. And not gonna lie, I have the same question as Tao Xi; if he grew up with LQH, would LQH grow up resenting him?? because of LZY obsession with FS and all. CH 65 A year and a half later. In mid-June, the results of college entrance exams were released all over the country, and as soon as the results were released, the students and teachers of Wenhua No.1 High School were all enthusiastic because this years senior class had unprecedentedly produced two provincial science champions. One was Lin Qinhe in this province, and the other was Tao Xi in the southwest province Strictly speaking, Tao Xi should be a student of Qingshui County No. 1 High School. After studying abroad in Wenhua No. 1 High School for two years due to the remote live broadcast project, he naturally returned to his original place for the college entrance examination. Isnt it the one who I taught at Wenhua No. 1 High School? Facing the controversy, the principal of Wenhua No. 1High School made a final conclusion. So there were two banners of the first place displayed at the entrance of Wenhua No.1 High School, and on each side of the school gate were large red display stands with pictures of the two students. The big announcement of joyful news in the center of the head was bolded with two red letters. Someone said this was too much like the balloon arch for a wedding, so Tao Xi was embarrassed to go to school during that time. Reporters from various media and the admissions office of prestigious schools flocked to the school, but couldnt find anyone after searching for a long time. It was learned from Zhou Qiang, the head teacher of the red1red = popular class, that the two top students had already applied for the top universities in the world, one studying art and the other studying mathematics, both on the west coast across the ocean. At the same time, the Fang family threw a lively banquet for Tao Xi. All the relatives and friends who had been in touch with them over the years were invited. Tao Xis birth was announced at a private party last year and was the subject of much discussion and sighing for a long time, and now everyone had accepted it. They only lament that it was not easy for the Fang family, but they were fortunate to welcome home a grandson who was not an insult to the familys reputation. At that time Tao Xi did not take the gossip of those relatives to heart, but his life experience made Qiao Henian sigh with emotion. Fang Sui was once his proudest female student, and her biological son also became his student by accident, so he sighed that the fate was wonderful. When Qiao Yitang learned about it, he didnt know what kind of nerve she had, saying she wanted to write down the story that was comparable to an eight oclock dog drama. Tao Xi strictly rejected it. When he returned from a full day of flowing feast, Tao Xi had long been exhausted and his face was stiff with laughter. Even Lin Qinhe had to carry him to the bath. Envy you, there is only a simple family banquet, unlike me being surrounded by so many people like an exhibition. Tao Xi stood in the bathroom with his eyes closed, his forehead resting on Lin Qinhes shoulder, letting Lin Qinhes hands rub the foam on his body. In fact, he understood what Fang Zuqing meant by inviting so many people. It was nothing more than fear that some people didnt know that his grandson was back, and worried that he felt like he would not be accepted. Lin Qinhe looked at the exhibition covered with white foam in front of him, raised his hand to wipe the foam on Tao Xis collarbone and asked in a loud voice: Have you eaten tonight? No. Tao Xi shook his head and sighed like an old man, I was asked by my relatives. Asking how I could study so well, can they borrow some of my notes. I feel like I can open a tutoring class. If I pull you in, it will be named as the No.1 tutor class, it will definitely make a lot of money. Lin Qinhe laughed. Tao Xi was not short of money now, but perhaps, it was because he was scared of lacking money before, so every time he talked about making money, he always made the most of it. Hey, I really think I can get one. Tao Xis idea was exciting. I dont teach others. Lin Qinhe spoke in a noble tone. Oh, Teacher Lin is only a teacher for me. Tao Xi smiled with his eyes bent. After taking a shower, Tao Xi was wrapped in a bath towel as Lin Qinhe dried his body. He found that something was wrong and hurriedly pressed Lin Qinhes hand, shaking his head, Im so tired today, I dont have much energy left. Lin Qinhe said with a raised eyebrow, Do you need your strength? Tao Xi was speechless, so he blushed and said, I have to go out tomorrow, and I havent even packed my luggage yet. Lin Qinhe finally let him go and put on his pajamas, only to bite his lips hard. Tao Xi walked to the bedroom and found the newly bought lubricant in the bedside table, the red flush on his face flushed to his neck. He remembered that the first time he had with Lin Qinhe was on his 18th birthday when they had a grand birthday party at his grandfathers house. The experience during that night had completely turned his perception of life upside down. Well, although he had some taste for it, but after all, it was a critical time in senior year, so he and Lin Qinhe both endured and didnt do much. Tao Xi shook his head, cleared the picture in his mind, and hurriedly went to pack up with Lin Qinhe. Tomorrow they were going to Qingshui County. Tao Xis provincial first place not only made Wenhua No.1 High School overjoyed, but Qingshui No.1 High School was even more so. The headmaster set off firecrackers in front of the school all day long, and the scene was probably even more lively than Wenhua No.1 High School. This time coincided with the celebration of the second anniversary of the remote live broadcast project. Taoxi was the first senior high school graduate since Qingshui No.1 High School adopted the remote live broadcast class. It was heard that many of the students in this years class got into the first-tier universities2I originally used first choice before as һ is the abbreviation for first choice universities, however, going by how they describe һ, I think first-tier is a better term for it and there were also a few accepted into heavy universities,3Im not sure either, but this is what I found on google رѧ (heavy university): include two ranges of colleges and universities, one is the key institutions directly under the state ministries and commissions, the other is the key provincial higher education institutions; + Undergraduate education focuses on theoretically specialised general education + Applied undergraduate education focuses on application-based professional education and practical skills education students are generally awarded a bachelors degree and a bachelors diploma after normal graduation which made the Qingshui County government leaders faces a lot brighter and was going to be promoted as a typical example of education for poverty alleviation in the province. In addition to this matter, this time he also had to deal with the matter of transferring his own household registration. He was busy studying before, so he never transferred. Yang Zhengming didnt say anything about Tao Xis change of his registered permanent residence to Fangs family. He just said it was good to transfer back. It was only ten oclock when the two finished packing their bags. Tao Xi went to open the gifts that grandparents and Yang Zhengming gave him for continuing his study His grandparents gave him a painting that he had wanted since a long time ago. It was a famous foreign landscape painter and it was not easy to get it. While Yang Zhengming gave him a sports car, Tao Xi looked at the bunch of car keys a little speechless. He didnt even have a drivers license, and he was going to study abroad soon. Was this car to be left to collect dust? He remembered that on his eighteenth birthday last year, Yang Zhengming gave him a suite and a book called How to Balance Early Love and Study. It had not been opened yet. Did he need to weigh? He wanted to study and fall in love. Tao Xi was surprised to find another book in Yang Zhengmings gift box. The title of the book was Those Things Adults Must Know, and from the cover you could tell that it must be about the same thing. He was so hot that he threw the book but Lin Qinhe took it over, flipping it open and scanning it a few times while saying nonchalantly, Uncle Yang also gave me a book last year. What book? Tao Xi asked, stunned. Lin Qinhes expression was a little hard to say as he said, How to Become a Responsible Man. Tao Xi hurriedly skipped this topic and asked Lin Qinhe, When will Mother Luo return to China? Lin Qinhe put down the book that was not suitable for children and said, The flight is next Tuesday. Luo Zhengyin gradually walked out of the shackles she set for herself. She divorced Lin Zeshi and became the gifted female pianist again. She had been attending piano performances all over the world for the last six months. In every city she visited, she would send two postcards to Tao Xi and Lin Qinhe, telling them the scenery here, so that they would have a chance to see them in the future. That happens to be that we are also back, we can have a meal together. Tao Xi said. Lin Qinhe let out an en. Its a pity that my sister has to take the high school entrance examination and cant go out with me. Tao Xi said regretfully. When she finishes her exams, we can take her on a trip together. Lin Qinhe said, while helping Tao Xi to put the gift away. Tao Xi was thinking of something, and there was a smile that couldnt be hidden from the corner of his mouth as he shook his head: She said she doesnt want to be a light bulb and plans to go to summer camp with her classmates. Tao Le transferred to the boarding school in his second year of junior high, and would come to live during the holidays. The young girl had come to the big city to learn more about the world. One day she asked Tao Xi, Brother, is Qinhe my sister-in-law? Tao Xi was so happy that she told Lin Qinhe several times, and as a result, he was taught a lesson in bed by Tao Les sister-in-law at night. After putting away his luggage and looking at the gifts, Tao Xi jumped onto Lin Qinhe and was skillfully held in a hug, he leaned his head on Lin Qinhes shoulder and yawned: Go to sleep, have to get up early tomorrow. Lin Qinhe carried Tao Xi to the bedroom. By the way, when you went to the family dinner this time, Grandpa Lin didnt say anything to you, right? Tao Xi suddenly remembered this and hurriedly asked. No. Lin Qinhe put Tao Xi on the bed while saying, He told you to go to dinner at the next family banquet. Tao Xi straightened up from the bed, his eyes filled with disbelief and joy: Grandpa Lin doesnt oppose us? Lin Qinhe smiled a little helplessly and said, Grandpa didnt oppose. Then this is a complete agreement? Tao Xi couldnt help but pounce on Lin Qinhe and ask as he wrapped his arms around his neck. Lin Qinhe leaned back and wrapped his arms around Tao Xis waist on the bed, smiling as he let out a en. Their relationship was known by their families in the second semester of the last year of high school, but it was also very difficult not to be known. After all, they lived together and went in and out of the house together everyday. The first thing to know was the two elders of the Fang family. Fang Zuqing reacted a bit fiercely at first. It was not that Lin Qinhe was not good, but that Tao Xi was still young and shouldnt have embarked on a difficult road so early, but then Ye Yurong cried and said, Do you still want to see him go on our daughters path again, and Fang Zuqing was completely silent. Lin Qinhes grandfather, Lin Weiliang, also found out about it. The old man, who had been in a high position for a long time, was conservative and not easy to compromise. He was furious and threatened to transfer Lin Qinhe to another school. Once he saw that Lin Weiliang did not agree, the protective Fang Zuqing could not sit still and felt that his grandson was being looked down upon, so he immediately went to the Lin family to argue with this long-time friend. Lin Qinhes father, Lin Zeshi, also tried hard to persuade him, saying that he had never been successful in his life and did not want to see his son do the same. But in the end, Lin Qinhe went to his grandfathers house on his own, and the two of them had a long talk overnight. No one knew what Lin Qinhe said, but the old mans attitude softened. At least he didnt ask Lin Qinhe to transfer to another school, and he turned a blind eye to the fact that they were living together. This time he offered to let Tao Xi go to the Lin family banquet, so it seemed that he had really agreed to it. With such good news, Tao Xi had no desire to sleep. He sat on Lin Qinhes lap and was about to discuss with him about what to do at the Lin family banquet, but before he could open his mouth, he was pinned to the bed by Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe clasped his hand and leaned down to look at him from a very close distance, his breath was lingering, his voice was low and slightly hoarse: Really not going to do anything tonight? Tao Xi raised his neck and kissed Lin Qinhe gently on the lips to answer his question. The newly bought item in the bedside table finally came in handy. The next morning, the two of them went to catch a flight, and when they arrived at their destination they took a long bus ride to Qingshui County, arriving almost late in the evening.. They arrived at Qingshui No.1 High School, but did not disturb the teachers. The big red banner of the provincial top student was still waving in the wind on the school gate. Tao Xi was familiar with school and took Lin Qinhe into the campus with him, but it was not yet summer vacation, so there were students in every classroom, and the sound of reading and listening to English was faintly heard. The two of them stood quietly in the twilight outside the school building. Tao Xi pointed to a classroom on the first floor and said to Lin Qinhe: I was in this classroom in the first year of high school. It happened to be sunny in the west and there was no air conditioning, it was hot as hell every day. Lin Qinhe raised his head to look at the classroom, only to see the burning clouds on the window glass like oil paintings. Two years ago, his Tao Xi spent the bitter cold and scorching heat in this classroom and wrote a letter to him. All classrooms will be equipped with air conditioning this summer. Lin Qinhe said that Qingshui No. 1 High School received funds allocated by the government, as well as funding from the Lin family industry. How wonderful, how I missed it. Tao Xi sighed enviously. The two stayed in the county hotel for one night, and the next day Tao Xi took Lin Qinhe to his hometown, Taoxi Bay. It was the busy season when the villagers were busy planting rice in the rice fields of the mountain cols. An older woman who was planting rice seedlings recognised Tao Xi on the ridge of the field; word had spread in the village about the Tao familys child being exchanged by mistake, but she had watched Tao Xi grow up and still asked about him like any elder, praising him for his success and for giving Taoxi Bay a good face. After speaking with the older woman, Tao Xi took Lin Qinhe up the hill, pointing out the streams in the mountains, the insects singing in the forest, and the smoke from the roofs He told the story of his childhood in detail, and Lin Qinhe listened carefully, walking all the way through the places where Tao Xi had lived. Returning to Taoxi Bay again, Tao Xis mood had changed completely. This was once the place he thought was his homeland, where the hills were full of joyous tracks of his inexperienced life. Then it was his prison, where the rolling hills were turned into a thorny fence that he could not cross. Now it was just a small sentence in his long life, a sinking boat on the side of a thousand sails that he had already crossed, and he had crossed it forever. Just like the name he didnt want to change, it was a fatal mark on his life that could not be erased, a bitter tea that had destroyed him and nourished him, and after the initial bitterness, only a long sweet aftertaste remained. The two of them wandered aimlessly through the mountains. On their way back, they passed by a farmhouse with black tiles and white walls halfway up the mountain, which seemed to have been unoccupied for a long time. The dilapidated wooden door was closed and the dojo was overgrown with weeds, with tattered spider silk tugging at the eaves. Tao Xi stopped and looked over, and Lin Qinhe knew that this should be the place Tao Xi lived before. I used to sun-dry tea on this dojo at this time of the year, and then take it back in the evening and sun-dry it again the next day. Tao Xi said to Lin Qinhe as he pointed to the dojo where the grass was growing. Lin Qinhe didnt know much about this and only asked, Have you ever drunk the tea you sun-dried? Tao Xi let out a laugh and said, You dont know this, right? You cant brew tea directly after its sun-dried, you have to go to the tea factory to do it. Lin Qinhe raised his eyebrows without saying anything. The two of them turned around to leave the unoccupied old house, and Tao Xi suddenly grabbed Lin Qinhes arm and shook it gently, What should I do, I cant walk anymore. Lin Qinhe glanced at Tao Xis hand. With a smile on the tip of his eyebrows, he said: Didnt you say that you climb the mountain very well? Having said that, he still lowered his body, held Tao Xis leg and carried him on his back, and continued walking down the mountain at a steady pace. The mountain sunshine was just right, and the breeze was quiet. Tao Xi pulled a dogs tail grass in his hand and rested his chin on Lin Qinhes shoulder, quietly tickling him with the grass and being pinched hard on his thigh before he relented. In fact, he was not tired, but suddenly remembered that a long time ago, he seemed to have longed for a tall back to carry him across the mountain, cross the river, and take him to the other side of the mountain. So he did so naively. On the third day the two could no longer wander around, as Qingshui No.1 High School was scheduled to have its second anniversary of the live remote classroom project and commendation ceremony on that morning. This celebration conference was not small. The guests included the citys leaders, Wenhua No.1 High schools leaders, and the representatives from the Lin Group, which founded the project. Of course, there was also Tao Xi, the first provincial champion in Qingshui County and even the city, in history. In the early morning, Tao Xi took Lin Qinhe, the representative of the top students family, to Qingshui No. 1 High School to report, and was applauded and welcomed by the extremely enthusiastic teachers and students of his alma mater. Tao Xi felt that he was riding a horse with a big red flower on his chest. He saw his teacher, who had left him for a long time. Feng Yuan, the head teacher who had been on the train all night and took him to Wenhua No.1 High School, was very happy to see him, but his eyes were red. He patted Tao Xi hard on the shoulder and praised him for becoming confident and cheerful, asking him to continue to study hard in the future and stop coming back to the mountains. When the teachers and the student met, Tao Xi couldnt help but have a sore nose. After catching up with the teacher for a while, he followed him to the lecture hall to attend the conference. Because he had to speak afterwards, he was arranged to sit on the podium side of the lecture hall, while Lin Qinhe sat in the audience below the stage. However, because of his outstanding looks, Tao Xi saw the girls on the stage craning their necks to look at Lin Qinhe. Next to Tao Xi sat an acquaintance, Su Yun, the secretary of the Lin family. Su Yun had been in charge of the remote classroom project, and she came to participate in the conference on behalf of the Lin Group this time. After the two of them exchanged pleasantries, the conference started with the speech of the principal of Qingshui No. 1 High School. The leaders and representatives took turns to speak on the stage, and each made a generous speech. Tao Xi felt a little bored, so he used his cell phone to quietly chat with Lin Qinhe. But soon it was his turn to give a speech. When the host said, Now, lets invite our provinces No. 1 in science this year, student of the first live broadcast in Rocket class of Qingshui No. 1 High School Tao Xi to speak, the entire lecture hall burst into a tsunami of applause. Many students even stood up and cheered loudly. Tao Xi felt flattered, he did not expect his popularity to be so high. He stood up and walked to the center of the podium amidst thunderous applause, set the microphone, and looked at the students who were gradually quieting down the stage. They were looking at him with eyes full of expectation and admiration. At that moment, he suddenly remembered himself two years ago, sitting in the dilapidated classroom in Qingshui No.1 High School. He also looked up at Lin Qinhe who was thousands of miles away on the screen with such hot, bright, hopeful eyes. And right now, Lin Qinhe was sitting in the audience on the stage, gazing softly at himself. Suddenly, his eye sockets were hot, he took a deep breath, and started the speech that he had already prepared for a while into the microphone. He didnt use flashy rhetoric or quotations. He just narrated his own experience and told these students who were as young as him in the past, that he had also been confused and perplexed, but as long as there was something firm in his heart, he could see the way forward and ride the wind. At the end of his speech, he promised his best wishes to Qingshui No.1 High School students: May you not forget to look up at the moon in the sky when you lower your heads to study. May you, like me, find your own moon and discover that you too can shine as you run towards it. Tao Xi returned to his seat amidst the even more enthusiastic applause. After sitting down, he was still a little emotional, and Su Yun smiled and applauded: You speak so well. Even I, a person who has worked for so many years, felt as if I have returned to my senior year of high school, and I want to work hard and study hard. Tao Xi just smiled. The conference was followed by a recognition session. From this year onwards, the top three students of the final examination in Qingshui County would be rewarded to study in Wenhua No.1 High School. At this moment, the three rewarded students were coming up to the stage in turn to give their speeches, and each of them looked very excited. Tao Xi looked at the students on stage and couldnt help but whisper to Su Yun on the side: They are all quite lucky, like me, to stumble upon such a good project and have such a rare opportunity. You only had to drop a rope into the deep well, and the people at the bottom of the well would climb up. These few students in the mountains were going to be like him in the past, grabbing this rope to study in Wenhua No.1 High School. Perhaps, they could change their fate completely. They have you to thank for their good fortune. Su Yun said with a smile. Tao Xi froze for two seconds, did not understand Su Yuns meaning, and asked, This is the ranking they have achieved with their own effort and hard work. Why should they thank me? Su Yun looked at Tao Xi in astonishment and said, Dont you know? Know what? Tao Xis eyes were blurred Su Yun seemed to feel that she had said something wrong. She couldnt help but glance at the audience. Even though the auditorium was turbulent, she could still find Lin Qinhe at a glance, and the male teacher next to him was speaking to him. She did not intend to say, but Tao Xi persistently asked: What do you know? Su Yun again thought it should be okay to say, so he whispered to Tao Xi. If it wasnt for you, our group wouldnt reward the first place in Qingshui County to go to Wenhua No.1 High School with this system. You are the first, and only with you can there be a follow-up now. As if he had a premonition, Tao Xi suddenly felt his heart beating violently at that moment, and his expression was still confused: What do you mean it wasnt for me? Wasnt this the public welfare education plan that the Lin family had planned from the beginning? The year before, Tao Xi already knew through his grandfather that the remote classroom project that allowed him to study in Wenhua First High School was founded by Lin Qinhes father, Lin Zeshi. In order to repay him, his grandpa also told Lin Zeshi that Tao Xi should recognize Lin Zeshi as his godfather. Lin Zeshi smiled and said no, Tao Xi would eventually be his son in the future, and the grandpa who didnt know the truth at that time was still a little puzzled. At that time, Tao Xi was also shocked and emotional for a long time after knowing it. It turned out that the imaginary white-haired grandfather who sponsored himself was actually Lin Qinhes father, and he said to Lin Qinhe indebtedly you see, God and your father have arranged for us to be together. At that time, Lin Qinhe gave a hum, saying that he was lucky, and he replied that of course, how could he come here if he had bad luck. And at this moment, he heard Su Yun say to him amidst the sound of the report hall reverberating like a heartbeat in his chest. This reward of sending the first place to Wenhua No.1 High School was entrusted to me by Qinhe. At that time I did not know what he meant. Later he always asked me to show your monthly exam results in Qingshui County to him. I realized that this reward is specially made for you. But also you are smart enough to work hard on your own and really got into first place and didnt let him down. There is also your allowance. You should still remember that around the midterm examination, the school gave you an allowance. It was given to you by Qinhe using his own money. The students on the stage were still expressing their feelings in awe, thanking their teachers and thanking Wenhua No.1 High School for the sponsoring, and vowing to study hard to get ahead in the future, just like Tao Xi two years ago. At this moment, Tao Xi couldnt listen at all. He was in a huge blankness and heartbeat, as if he stepped into the endless clouds in his sleep, but at the moment his body was weightless, he was dazzled by the bright moon and brilliance thousands of miles above the clouds. With the last applause, the lengthy meeting finally ended. The students in the lecture hall slowly rushed towards the door like a tide. Tao Xi quickly came down from the stage, trying to pass through the crowd to find Lin Qinhe in the audience. But as soon as he jumped off the stage, he was surrounded by a group of juniors and girls, all youthful and innocent faces looked at him with smiles, and asked him questions in a frantic manner. One of the tall boys rushed to him first and said to him excitedly: Senior Tao Xi, although I thanked you in my speech just now, I still want to say thank you personally. Tao Xi looked over in a daze and vaguely recognized the boy as the student who gave his speech on stage earlier, but he hadnt listened carefully. The boy reddened his face, seemingly extremely embarrassed, and said expectantly: Senior, do you remember me? I was in the same junior high school as you, and you saved me when I was bullied in the past. Tao Xi was even more confused. His brilliant deeds in junior high school had already been deliberately forgotten by him, and he had no impression of the person in front of him at all. Its okay if you dont remember! The boy hurriedly said. I always remember, Senior. I used to get very bad grades, so I thought it was useless to study. But when I saw you on the live screen in the classroom after I went to high school and saw that you were that good in Wenhua No.1, I decided to study hard and go to Wenhua No.1 like you. Now Ive made it happen, so I thought Id come and thank you in person! As the boy stumbled over his words, the students gathered around him laughed kindly, making him blush even more. Tao Xi also laughed, he turned into the model senior and patted the boys shoulder, encouragingly said: Cherish the opportunity in Wenhua No.1 High School and pay back your alma mater later. The boy nodded very vigorously and clenched his fist: I will! The crowd gradually dispersed and left, and Tao Xi was finally free. He turned around in the lecture hall and saw the clear daylight coming through the long slanted windows, cutting the old auditorium into a bright geometric figure. In that bright place, Lin Qinhe was holding his arms half leaning against the seat, his eyes fell on him, there was a light smile in his eyes. Tao Xi took a deep breath and walked slowly towards Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe lowered his eyes slightly, and he saw that Tao Xis eyes were covered with a layer of water, as if they had been wet not long ago, so he raised his eyebrows and asked, So happy to be thanked by a student? Obviously the scene of the boys excitement and gratitude was all caught by Lin Qinhe. Tao Xi pressed down the long-standing tide of his heart, the corners of his mouth curved and said: There are people who study hard for me, of course Im happy. He paused, and the corners of his mouth smiled deeper, Isnt this the same as when I tried to study hard for you? Not the same. Lin Qinhe denied decisively. Where is it different? Lin Qinhe raised his eyebrows, raised his chin slightly and said, He cant catch up with you. There was some arrogance in his expression. Tao Xi was happy and said with a smile, That junior didnt want to chase me, ba. Of course it was not the same. No one could be as lucky as he was, so lucky that someone was willing to create luck for him silently. The two walked side by side towards the outside of the lecture hall, and all the way, there were scattered students quietly looking at them, the bolder girls shouted senior, hello and scurried away. At noon, they had a long and boring lunch with the local leaders, and were dragged to take various pictures. When they came out, nearly half of the afternoon passed. Tao Xi took Lin Qinhe and rushed to do the last thing in Qingshui County this time, to handle household registration migration. Because it involved the household registration of two completely different places, the migration of household registration was more troublesome than Tao Xi thought, and it took him a lot of time to prepare the documents. The police station was clean and deserted. Lin Qinhe asked Tao Xi to sit on a chair in front of the window, while he stood aside. The staff placed all the documents next to the computer and meticulously went through the documents to check. Tao Xi looked at his own archives in the hands of others, like a book bound by fate that hurriedly turned over, and he suddenly realized that this place really had nothing to do with him. The memory of these more than ten years flashed in front of him like a flash of light, like a blanket of fog in the morning ocean blurred, but he remembered the most vivid pictures in the fog. Thinking of the Taoxi Bay where he grew up, the peach blossoms blooming on the banks of the Qingxi River and egrets flew over the jagged green and white paddy fields. He hid in the woodshed to paint, and unwittingly learned of his fate as a joke, and had since spent his days in the mountains in a muddle. Thinking of the dilapidated classrooms in the first year of high school, the summer heat in summer was like weeds that start a prairie fire without an end. He saw Lin Qinhe for the first time on the screen, and from then on a bright moon rose in the wilderness of his heart. Thinking of the empty and huge concert hall, the drooping sunset rolling violently on the horizon, the endless red-gold twilight spreading in through the long windows, blazing over the black piano and kissing them. Thinking of the Christmas Eve of his seventeenth birthday, they were in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, looking side by side at the bright neon and drifting snow. Lin Qinhe kissed away the tears at the corners of his eyes and said to him. Tao Xi, Ill take you home, okay? It was almost evening when they got the household registration certificate. He and Lin Qinhe walked out of the police station together, pushed open the glass door that was condensed with water vapor, and the thick twilight and heat rushed towards them. They bought two bottles of iced soda, and walked aimlessly side by side in the silent evening streets of the small county. The sunset was like a coral buckle tied to the skirts of the sky and mountains, the twilight was paved with late autumn maple leaves on the bluestone pavement, the feet of two long slanting shadows swaying close to each other. Tao Xi looked at the sunset at the end of the alley and said to the person beside him: I used to think I was very unfortunate, but later I felt very lucky. There are three things that I think are my best luck. Do you know which ones? Which ones? Lin Qinhe asked smoothly. The first is to see you, the second is to be sponsored to study at Wenhua No. 1 High School, and the third is to become a student of Grandpa Qiao. He paused briefly and turned his head to look at Lin Qinhe, perhaps because he was facing the setting sun, the twilight accidentally haloed in the corner of his eyes, and he said Now I know that all my luck comes from the first one. Seeing you, meeting you, going to Wenhua No.1 High School, becoming a student of Qiao Henian, and returning to the family that was missed for seventeen years, all the luck was because of you. Lin Qinhe lowered his gaze, raised his hand and stroked Tao Xis thin red eyes with his thumb, swiping the long eyelashes lightly on his fingertips as he asked: Then, do you know the luckiest thing that ever happened to me? What is it? Opened the letter you wrote to me. Lin Qinhe paused, and the corners of his lips lifted slightly, After all, I didnt throw away such a fancy letter. It really takes a lot of luck. Tao Xi couldnt help but smile. In the sleeve of the summer breeze, in the skirt of the setting sun, the hand that caressed his face lifted his chin and he gently closed his eyes, waiting for the kiss of the person in front of him. Once he was in a deep well looking up at the moon. It was only by following a rope that happened to hang down that he was able to climb out of the well and walk alone toward the moon, never hesitating even for thousands of miles. It turned out that the rope was not an accidental good luck. It turned out that when I was running to the moon. The moon was also running to me. The author has something to say: This is the end of the story of Lin Qinhe and Tao Xi. This is the most difficult book to write, a lot of things happened to me during the period, and I am a person who is easily affected by the state of mind, so the writing is not smooth. Im very sorry to have given you a bad reading experience, and Im grateful to the readers who have been encouraging and waiting for me. I wish everyone can find their own moon, and I wish everyones moon is also running to you. See you in the extras if its meant to be! T/N: So its completed (sadly, there is no extra)! Thank you for reading this. It has been a pleasant journey translating this tbh and I hope you all enjoyed reading this as much as I am! See you all in my next project! (itll be a rebirth esport danmei if no one has translated it yet lol) I put the esports one on hold because Im busy, so I pick up yet another short story (only 48 chapters), yet another very heart warming story. Basically its about these two boys who grew up in a very heartwarming small town. If TMCTM is about the moon, then Id say It Seems There is Light is about the sun. Ill start posting on Nov 11th