Chen Yunqi replied quickly this time: "I'll finish it tomorrow."
His tone was still cold, but at least it wasn't the kind of rejection he didn't want to hear. After a moment, San San felt a little relieved.
It was an agonizing day. San San buried himself in the fields, working tirelessly to try and distract himself, even taking several sips of his father's liquor. But nothing he did was effective; Chen Yunqi's image filled his mind, becoming clearer the more he tried to ignore it. He wished time would pass quickly so he could see Chen Yunqi sooner, yet at other times he prayed for it to slow down so he could prepare himself mentally—he was terrified, afraid that when they met, the man would still be so polite and cold towards him, just like he was with everyone else, seemingly friendly and courteous yet maintaining a distant, unapproachable distance.
From the moment they first met until now, all the tenderness and affection that Chen Yunqi had accumulated in his heart had been reserved for San San alone.
But what merit or ability does Lan Yanshan have to presume to expect others to treat him this way?
He was filled with grief and indignation, and he was furious—furious at Chen Yunqi, and furious at himself.
The next evening, San San walked into the school gate as promised, carrying his textbooks. Despite still feeling confused and aggrieved, he couldn't help but want to see Chen Yunqi.
Chen Yunqi was leaning against the classroom door, smoking. San San stopped in her tracks a distance away, staring blankly at him as he lowered his head and exhaled smoke, the smoke rising and obscuring Chen Yunqi's thin, narrow eyes, making it impossible to discern whether the look in his eyes was tenderness or indifference.
The dark clouds of the past few days dispersed, and the afterglow of the setting sun once again bathed the mountains. All the doubts, anger, grievances, and sorrow vanished the moment they finally saw Chen Yunqi.
All that remains is an overwhelming longing.
A day apart feels like three autumns. As long as I can see you, I don't care if you're indifferent or distant.
I miss you so much.
Overwhelmed with longing, tears streamed down her face. San San quickly raised her hand and wiped away her tears with her sleeve, suppressing the pounding in her heart as she slowly walked over.
Chen Yunqi was smoking when he looked up and saw San San approaching. Feeling guilty, he was still organizing his thoughts to make a sarcastic remark when San San drew closer and unexpectedly met his reddened eyes, causing his heart to sink.
That night, San San was sullen and unhappy. No one else noticed, but Tang Yutao did.
It was true that he was afraid the two of them would really develop feelings for each other, and it was also true that he couldn't bear to see them being so distant. Tang Yutao did hope that Chen Yunqi could quickly cut off San San's feelings as soon as possible, but who knew that this person was either as warm as the spring in March or as cold as the winter in December. This kind of hot-and-cold, simple and crude avoidance method was hard for even a strong woman like him to bear, let alone San San.
So when Chen Yunqi returned from Group Six, he seized the opportunity to patiently and earnestly enlighten this clueless fellow.
Chen Yunqi was in a dilemma; he didn't know what he should do. He could directly and clearly refuse Xiaosong, or coldly avoid him, but he just couldn't bring himself to treat San San the same way. His consistent principles told him that he couldn't let himself go any longer; at the very least, his attitude couldn't be ambiguous; it had to be clear and resolute.
The man in front of him had clearly been crying. Chen Yunqi looked at his tear-streaked face, which was expressionless and cold as ice, making him feel so guilty that he wanted to slap himself.
Chen Yunqi, somewhat at a loss, led San San into the house and sat down at the desk. He pretended to be calm, but his mind was in turmoil. He opened the textbook and exercise book and began to explain things to San San absentmindedly.
San San sat quietly and obediently beside him as always. When Chen Yunqi asked him to solve a problem, he would take a pen and write and calculate on the table. When asked to analyze, he would explain in a soft, gentle voice. Throughout the entire tutoring session, San San didn't look at him once; his eyes remained fixed on the books on the table. At the end, Chen Yunqi assigned him some homework, and he put away his books, paper, and pen, got up, and said goodbye to Chen Yunqi, his tone devoid of any emotion.
Chen Yunqi watched San San leave, feeling an overwhelming sense of loss. He had never seen San San so dejected and utterly despondent. Although he felt a pang of pity, he thought, better to end it sooner rather than later. Rather than letting things drag on and become tangled, it was better to let things take their natural course and drift apart.
After that, aside from spending short periods together during daily tutoring sessions, Chen Yunqi stopped frequently seeking out San San and no longer ate at his house. San San invited him a few times, but he always made excuses, saying he wasn't hungry or that he had already eaten at someone else's house. After refusing her so many times, San San gradually stopped inviting him altogether.
Li Dong's maternal grandfather passed away. Chen Yunqi was initially worried and wanted to see him off, but Tang Yutao said it wasn't necessary, explaining that he had already asked his classmate in City C to meet him and help get his grandfather safely onto a train to another province. With both his grandfather and Li Laoqi gone, Chen Yunqi often went to their house to chat with his aunt, help her with chores, and occasionally go to the fields with her to do farm work.
When other villagers occasionally encountered her, they couldn't help but laugh at her. They would say the same things over and over: that Third Sister was really capable of dating a young man, and that Li Laoqi was working so hard outside and didn't even know he was being cuckolded. Some even said that Third Sister had found herself a son-in-law so early that she would never have to worry about not having anyone to do the work.
At first, Chen Yunqi was a little worried, afraid that it might cause some misunderstanding, but San Niang didn't take it seriously and told Chen Yunqi not to mind. Later, Chen Yunqi discovered that it seemed to be a cultural custom and a way of socializing among people here to speak frankly with each other. If you didn't exchange a few words with them when you met, it would seem like you weren't very friendly.
So he stopped putting on airs. When someone made fun of him, he would occasionally retort sharply. Over time, people grew to like this city guy more and more. The once unapproachable Teacher Chen not only did farm work without complaining about the dirt or fatigue, but he also became able to take a joke. Even Sheng Xueli, who had a grudge against him before, began to look at him differently. The two not only reconciled, but would also get together to smoke when they had nothing to do.
Half a month passed quickly, and Christmas was just around the corner. While packing his things, Chen Yunqi saw the little nightlight he had prepared for San San. He sat on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at the tacky wrapping paper for a long time, wondering if he could even give this gift away.
He longed for San San as well.
San San's studies were progressing rapidly. Tang Yutao told him that ordinary educational assistance organizations have a limit on the amount of living expenses they can provide for a high school student, which is about 3,000 yuan per year, distributed monthly by the organization to impoverished students. If tuition, accommodation, and miscellaneous expenses are also covered, the monthly amount would range from 1,500 to 3,000 yuan. Individual assistance from non-organizational organizations can be negotiated independently based on the recipient's family circumstances and academic performance.
This amount was just a drop in the ocean for his mother.
If her grades keep up and the tuition fees are covered, barring any unforeseen circumstances, San San will be able to return to school smoothly next September.
Thinking of this, Chen Yunqi felt much better. Although their relationship had become distant, he had at least tried to keep his promise. He decided to find a suitable time to explain the matter to San San's parents. As long as they supported him, San San's return to school would be a done deal.
Then he can leave in peace, go find Huang Youzheng first, then go back to work and earn money, and take care of San San's expenses himself in the future.
On the morning of Christmas Eve, Tang Yutao solemnly washed and dressed up. He took a pair of rusty scissors he had found somewhere and carefully trimmed his beard in front of a small mirror. Then he put on clean clothes and socks, and even his underwear was brand new and had just been unpacked.
During this period, he led the children in practicing hymns on the playground every day. He played downloaded accompaniments on his phone, turning every physical education and art class into a vocal lesson. Chen Yunqi had to endure his terrible, off-key singing every day while drawing the blackboard. At Tang Yutao's request, he drew a Christmas tree and reindeer in a snowy scene on that wall, decorated the blackboard with branches and bells to create a border, and left a small space in the middle to copy a short passage from the Bible.
Li Hui stood in front of the bulletin board, holding a large tea mug, and read aloud without any intonation:
"Love is patient, love is kind. It never fails."
After reading it, I clicked my tongue repeatedly, "How pretentious!"
Tang Yutao stroked his beard with satisfaction and said, "Not bad, not bad. It has depth and a romantic religious flavor. I like it."
Li Hui pointed to the passage and said to Tang Yutao, "Other people's love is patient and kind, but your love seems impatient. So, do I have to find another place to stay for Christmas Eve?"
“How can I bear to leave you alone in the mountains during such a holiday?” Tang Yutao raised his hand and pointed at Chen Yunqi. “Why don’t we take him with us? They can keep each other company.”
“Hehe,” Li Hui chuckled sarcastically, “I don’t have any fetish for liking men.”
This wasn't the first or second time he'd openly or subtly mocked Chen Yunqi and San San's ambiguous relationship. Tang Yutao was worried that if it happened a few more times, even the good-tempered Chen Yunqi might lose his temper and beat him up.
But he couldn't worry about that right now. Wearing his new underwear, Tang Yutao looked dashing and radiant, like a peacock about to spread its tail feathers. After school, he kept the students behind for another rehearsal. The children were very excited to hear that Teacher Song was coming back. Although the lyrics of the hymn were difficult to pronounce and memorize, and the meaning was hard to understand, everyone practiced the song with extra effort.
After dismissing the students, the three were too lazy to move around, so they had instant noodles for dinner. After eating, Tang Yutao took out a gasoline can, turned on the power, and prepared to watch movies on his old laptop to pass the time. Li Hui asked him why he didn't go down the mountain to pick up Song Feifei, and Tang Yutao pouted and said, "I don't know what she's up to, she just won't let me pick her up."
"I'm afraid I'm going to give you a surprise," Li Hui said, raising his eyebrows at him.
Tang Yutao didn't take it seriously. He asked Chen Yunqi and Li Hui to find a movie on his computer's hard drive while he went to the restroom. When he returned, Chen Yunqi happened to click on a movie called "Fantastic Four".
Tang Yutao looked at the title and felt something was off, but couldn't quite place it. So he went back to the table and sat down. The three of them squeezed onto a long bench and prepared to watch the movie.
Double-clicking the icon brought up the player interface. There were no familiar movie company intros; instead, four strangely dressed men and women appeared abruptly on screen. Upon closer inspection, all four were barely clothed, their private parts completely exposed. They quickly stripped naked, jumping straight to the obscene topic without uttering a single line of dialogue.
The visually striking scene appeared so suddenly that the three of them didn't have time to react. After a long while, Li Hui exclaimed in disbelief, "What the hell is this?! The Fantastic Four!"
He turned to look at Tang Yutao with a lewd expression, "You have such heavy and perverted tastes."
"Don't look if you don't understand! This is my collection!" Tang Yutao reached for the mouse, trying to close the media player, but Li Hui stopped him, "Don't close it! I haven't figured out which one is the Invisible Woman yet!"
Chen Yunqi stood there, stunned, and awkwardly turned his head away. Tang Yutao, having given up all pretense of modesty, patted Chen Yunqi on the shoulder and said, "Little virgin, it's teaching time! Want me to give you a professional live commentary?"
As soon as she finished speaking, a sweet and cheerful voice, like the tinkling of silver bells, came from behind her:
Merry Christmas Eve! What are you all looking at?
A note from the author:
--- ①This is from 1 Corinthians in the Old Testament of the Bible. I haven't quoted the whole thing, just two verses. I've been quite busy lately, so I haven't been able to update regularly. And this old lady never expected to get stuck on handling the romance plot...
Chapter Twenty-Two: Surprise
Since arriving in Tianyun Village, Chen Yunqi has had many experiences he had never had before, such as doing all kinds of farm work, sewing for others, mediating disputes between teachers and villagers, and so on. These were all extraordinary life experiences for him. Many times he was glad that he made a spur-of-the-moment decision; otherwise, wouldn't he have missed out on so many experiences in life?
But among these experiences he didn't want to miss was hiding in a room with two older teenagers watching porn, only to be caught red-handed by a female teacher who suddenly showed up. At that moment, he even felt that it was exactly the same as going to a prostitute and not even having time to take off your pants before being broken into by police from an anti-prostitution raid.
Chen Yunqi was strict with himself, always behaving appropriately and respectably, both in public and in private. While he wouldn't presume to call himself a paragon of virtue and morality, nor deny that he too possessed emotions and desires, he was ashamed to openly display them, nor would he indulge himself without restraint; his consistent approach was suppression. Despite his open and honest nature, he couldn't understand why, like Tang Yutao and Li Hui, he now looked utterly guilty as Song Feifei suddenly burst into the room.
Everything happened so suddenly that none of the three thought to turn off the media player. For a moment, they were speechless; the room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. The "Fantastic Four" on the computer screen were still locked in battle, the shouts and profanities emanating from them making the atmosphere in the room extremely eerie... The four of them, with eight eyes, just stared at each other for a long while before Li Hui finally muttered, "What a fucking surprise..."
You see, Song Feifei rushed here as fast as she could, arriving three hours ahead of schedule for this surprise. But when she excitedly entered, she was met with this scene; instead of joy, she was utterly shocked.
Li Hui wanted to explain a few more words, but when he saw the wads of tissues he had casually thrown on the ground—the tissues he had used to wipe his mouth while eating instant noodles—he suddenly felt speechless and swallowed back the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
The awkward meeting ended with Li Hui abruptly closing his laptop. Tang Yutao's new underwear buff also wore off, and he sat there blankly until Li Hui pinched him hard, bringing him back to his senses. He quickly got up to take Song Feifei's backpack. Chen Yunqi also stood up, offering his chair to Song Feifei, and stood awkwardly to the side.
After sitting down, Song Feifei composed herself and pretended not to have seen anything, saying, "I'm so tired, so hungry. Is there anything to eat?"
She had been hiking all afternoon and hadn't had dinner yet. It was well past dinnertime, and going to the villager's house now would only be a burden. Hearing this, Tang Yutao quickly threw all the miscellaneous things on the table, including the computer, onto the mattress, tore off a tissue to wipe the table, and brought hot water to make Song Feifei a bowl of noodles.
Song Feifei's ability to stay in these mountains for over five months speaks volumes about her easygoing and cheerful nature. She's a year younger than Tang Yutao, making her his junior. As a modern woman, she's certainly not surprised by men's affairs. After all, they are three virile young men, spending their days in this remote forest like ascetic monks, so it's understandable that they need to relieve themselves sometimes.
But it's just too unbelievable that three people have to do this together... Song Feifei sighed inwardly, these three people really have an outrageously good relationship.
While waiting for the noodles to cook, Tang Yutao introduced Chen Yunqi to Song Feifei. After greeting him, Song Feifei stared at Chen Yunqi for a long time and said incredulously, "Tang Yutao, how can you have such a handsome friend?"
Upon hearing this, Tang Yutao retorted with displeasure, "Don't you understand the saying 'birds of a feather flock together'?" Seeing that Chen Yunqi's expression became unnatural under the stare, he warily said to Song Feifei, "Stop looking! Being handsome is useless; he doesn't like women!"
Chen Yunqi was both amused and exasperated, but didn't argue. Song Feifei exclaimed with wide eyes, "Sure enough, nine out of ten handsome men are gay!"
The noodles were ready, and Song Feifei ate them while asking about the children's recent situation. Tang Yutao immediately sat up straight and began to report to her.
Chen Yunqi listened from the side, habitually taking out a cigarette from his pocket and putting it in his mouth. Suddenly realizing there was a girl in the room, he immediately took the cigarette out and held it in his hand. Song Feifei noticed this, swallowed the last mouthful of noodles, wiped her mouth, and held out her hand to Chen Yunqi: "Give me one."
Chen Yunqi was surprised that she also smoked. He paused for a moment before quickly taking one out of the pack and placing it in her palm. He then lit it for her and watched her take a few puffs skillfully before lighting one for himself.
Tang Yutao reported everything in great detail. When he mentioned Huang Yelin's family, Song Feifei was stunned and didn't even notice a long piece of cigarette ash falling down.
Tang Yutao pushed the instant noodle cup towards her, gesturing for her to flick her cigarette ash into it, and then said, "That's about it. Huang Youzheng's disappearance is very strange. Xiaoqi and I plan to investigate it when we have time. Also, after you left, Teacher Sheng caused trouble for us a few more times, and Li Hui has completely broken ties with him."
Mentioning the last conflict with Teacher Sheng seemed to stir up unpleasant memories for Li Hui. He muttered under his breath with a dark face, "Hmph, if it weren't for that certain nice guy, I would have crippled him and dragged him to the Education Bureau so everyone could see his true colors!"
Song Feifei could guess who this "good-natured person" was without him saying it. Knowing Li Hui's impulsive and easily angered nature, she didn't take his words to heart. Tang Yutao glared at Li Hui and said to Song Feifei, "Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. Tell me about yourself, how's it going in Beijing? Is work going well?"
Song Feifei stubbed out her cigarette and said with a smile, "It's alright, but I'm not used to the climate. Beijing is so dry and the smog is terrible, it's made my skin worse. Work is going smoothly though, since it's related to my major. I have several big projects on hand right now, and my team is in dire need of people."
As she spoke the last sentence, she looked at Tang Yutao meaningfully. Tang Yutao's expression darkened upon hearing this, and he sat there with his head down, remaining silent. The atmosphere between the two suddenly became somewhat strange.
Tang Yutao's reaction seemed to be within Song Feifei's expectations. She gathered her long, loose hair, sighed, and said, "You still don't want to come with me?"
Upon hearing Song Feifei's final question, Chen Yunqi suddenly understood a bit more about the entanglement between her and Tang Yutao.
Are you coming with me or not?
This phrase was all too familiar to him.
The reason why people are troubled by love is probably because they cannot get what they want and cannot let go of what they cannot have.
Tang Yutao had long anticipated that an argument would inevitably follow the joy of their long-awaited reunion, but he hadn't expected it to happen so quickly. Before he could even feel the joy, a tense and confrontational situation had already arisen. He said stiffly, "I don't want to talk about this."
Song Feifei seemed to be enraged. Ignoring Chen Yunqi and Li Hui who were still watching, she said to him aggressively, "You have to talk today whether you want to or not. This time, we have to make things clear no matter what. Don't even think about running away again!"
Chen Yunqi had experienced this scene before, not just once, but many times. He was lost in his memories when Li Hui suddenly pulled him up and pushed him outside, saying, "Come on, come on, don't keep San San waiting."
Chen Yunqi was completely confused upon hearing this. "Huh?"
Li Hui pushed him while winking at him, "Didn't you make plans with San San? Hurry up and go!"
Chen Yunqi finally realized, "Oh, it's... well, we'll be going now."
Song Feifei said to Li Hui in an annoyed tone, "Teacher Chen made an appointment with San San, why are you going along as a third wheel?"
Li Hui stopped in his tracks, scratching his head and thinking for a long time before pointing to the door and saying, "It's a festival, I'm going to admire the moon."
Song Feifei couldn't help but laugh out loud. Chen Yunqi had just opened the door when Tang Yutao suddenly called out to him, his face dark, "Um... Song Feifei is staying in your room tonight."
Chen Yunqi said "Oh," and then Tang Yutao impatiently urged, "Hurry up and leave, close the door, it's cold!"
The two men, shivering in the cold wind after being kicked out, exchanged glances, each lost in their own thoughts. Chen Yunqi wondered, "Where should I go tonight?" Li Hui, on the other hand, was thinking, "Well, that guy's new underwear was a waste."