"Teacher Hua." Xiangxiang remained expressionless.
"Yan Shuang! Why does he call me that!" Shi Lu clenched his fists and angrily approached Yan Shuang, causing Yan Shuang to retreat to the corner and wipe her sweat. "Well, well... let's discuss this in a meeting, shall we?"
After adopting Xiangxiang, Qi Hui took him to the hospital to visit Le Xi almost every day. Xiangxiang was slightly more obedient in front of Le Xi, but he refused to call Qi Hui "Uncle" and Le Xi "Uncle," which made Qi Hui angry many times.
"Xiangxiang, what should you call me?" After Qi Hui and Yan Shuang left, Le Xi asked Xiangxiang gently.
"Teacher Xiaobao."
"Why?"
"Because Xiao Bao's older brother calls you Bao Bao, you are Teacher Xiao Bao."
"What should you call that tall uncle from earlier?"
Xiangxiang was lying on the edge of Lexi's bed looking at a magazine. He looked up at him, thought for a moment, and said, "Brother Xiaobao."
"Why do you call him Brother Xiaobao?" Lexi asked repeatedly.
"Because he is Xiaobao's older brother."
"...Xiangxiang, can you call me Second Father?" Lexi asked, blushing.
"don't want."
"Why? If Xiangxiang calls me Second Daddy, I'll give you something delicious, okay?" Lexi tempted.
"don't want."
"So, what does Xiangxiang want?" Lexi asked curiously.
"I want to..." Xiangxiang bit his finger, thought for a long time, and said timidly, "I want to... I want to ask Xiaobao to promise me something..."
"What is it?" Lexi asked, her eyes wide with anticipation.
"So many people are saying, saying, that Xiao Bao is going to die... You... can you not die? If you die, no one will be so good to me anymore... And... and... Xiao Bao, after you were hospitalized, Brother Xiao Bao and Teacher Hua and Teacher Yan have been unhappy... Xiang Xiang doesn't want them to be unhappy. So... so Xiao Bao, can you not die?" Xiang Xiang stammered.
Lexi paused for a moment, gently patted his head, and wanted to say something but felt powerless.
Who would want to die? Even if I was once so desperate to end my own life, now that I have so many people around me who care about and love me, how can I die so easily? I've worked so hard to live until now, and I was determined to have surgery to get a pacemaker. I studied, opened a shop, and did volunteer work. I thought I could be a normal person, but I never expected that everything was just a beautiful dream from the beginning.
I plummeted, crashing into reality. Several times I thought I wouldn't make it, but when I opened my eyes and saw everyone's concerned eyes, I thought, I must live on. I really, really want to live...
Perhaps I was punished for being too greedy? Knowing Shi Lu's and my brother's feelings for me, I hesitated to make a decision. To be loved is such a blissful thing! So I always wanted so much, so much more. But I didn't realize that doing so was actually hurting them. What a selfish person I am! No wonder, no wonder…
"Le Xi? Le Xi?" Yan Shuang, who had just entered the room, was terrified by Xiang Xiang's uncontrollable sobbing and Le Xi's silent silence. She went over and called out to Le Xi, but to her surprise, he didn't respond at all. When he finally did respond a little, he was already in tears again.
"What's wrong? What's wrong?" Yan Shuang sat down next to Le Xi, put her arm around his shoulder, and gently patted him while speaking softly to comfort him.
"Sister..." Le Xi called her softly.
"Yes, I'm here," Yan Shuang replied softly.
"I don't want to die... I really... don't want to..."
"No, Lexi, you're strong...it will pass..."
"Actually, I'm not strong at all... I'm a coward... I'm timid as a mouse... I'm even afraid of injections, and I faint at the sight of blood. When I exposed my classmates for cheating, I stood outside the registrar's office for a long time, and my legs were shaking when I saw the teacher... Later, when I fought with them, I really wanted to cry. But a man can't cry... What have I been working so hard for? I've wasted so much time before, and I don't want to be decadent anymore... I just want to compete fairly, I just want to proudly tell my brother and Shi Lu that I don't need their protection, that I can stand tall on my own... I can rely on myself and become a useful person... But... I've been shamelessly monopolizing their feelings, I didn't want to, I didn't want to... But I can't control myself... How happy it is to be loved... I just, I just crave happiness too much..." Le Xi turned around and leaned on Yan Shuang's shoulder, slowly sobbing.
“Le Xi, you are brave, you have done it, you are a useful person... worthy of respect,” Yan Shuang said, her eyes reddening and her voice choked with emotion. “You have always worked very hard, you are great.”
May you have this day every year!
Soon, Lexi's twentieth birthday arrived, and everyone decorated his hospital room with vibrant colors. The children from the special education school folded a huge pile of paper cranes for Lexi, strung them together with red thread, hung wind chimes at the bottom, and tied them to Lexi's window. Other children sewed Lexi a short-sleeved T-shirt with a large "福" (Fu, meaning good fortune) character drawn on it, saying they hoped Teacher Lexi would be happy. Even more astonishingly, some children made Teacher Lexi a pair of boxer shorts out of red cloth, with the words "Teacher Lexi, we love you" written on the bottom, leaving everyone utterly astonished.
Mrs. Shi is still recovering, but upon hearing it was Lexi's birthday, she insisted on making longevity noodles for her on that day. She finally got permission after much pleading and cajoling with the doctor.
On his birthday, Qi Hui went to a beauty salon for a full treatment to make himself look less haggard. He drove his Smart car to the car wash early in the morning, bought a large cake, and rushed to the hospital excitedly. However, upon arrival, he discovered that he wasn't the first to arrive; Le Xi was already surrounded by gifts.
Qi Hui frowned inwardly, then smiled, rummaged through the gifts on Le Xi's bedside table, leaned over and kissed his forehead, then ruffled his hair: "Baby, you're another year older! Happy birthday! May you have many more birthdays to come."
"Yes! Thank you, brother!" Le Xi nodded emphatically and said happily.
"This is my birthday present for you." Qi Hui patted his head and handed him a beautifully wrapped little box.
"What is this? It's such a small box, could it be a checkbook?" Yan Shuang, a miser, leaned closer and asked expectantly.
"Why do you think about money all the time?" Shi Lu looked at the gift he had given her: a jade Buddha pendant that he, who had never believed in Buddhism, had gone to the Jade Buddha Temple to have consecrated. Hmm, the box was bigger than Qi Hui's.
"Open it and take a look." Qi Hui's eyes gleamed with an incredulous excitement.
"Oh!" Lexi smiled at him and slowly untied the bow. Inside was a uniquely shaped object. She picked it up and examined it for a while, looking at the illustration on it, and then asked guessingly, "A car key?"
"Okay, shall I take you to see it? Smart, it's perfect for you to drive."
"I can't drive!" Le Xi pouted.
"Once you're better, you can go learn to drive. Then you won't need anyone to pick you up and drop you off wherever you go, wouldn't that be great?" Qi Hui tempted.
For lunch, Qi Hui specially booked a private room at the hotel. Zi Jie and Chen Song rode in one car, Yan Shuang, Shi Lu, and Shi's mother rode in another, while the children and teachers from the special education school rode in three eight-seater vans that Qi Hui had sent from his company.
The Smart car, with its bright yellow base and silver trim, was small and cute. Le Xi fell in love with it at first sight. After Qi Hui carried him into the car, he kept looking around curiously, which greatly satisfied Qi Hui's vanity. Driving also felt refreshing.
To ensure a smooth journey, Qi Hui drove slowly. When they arrived at the hotel, everyone was already seated at the tables. The children sat at two large tables, and the adults at another. Le Xi had originally wanted to invite some of her teachers and classmates from school, but Qi Hui made an excuse that they could invite them after he recovered and was discharged from the hospital. So Le Xi didn't insist, only saying that she hoped Pan Ge could come, because Pan Ge was the classmate who cared about her the most at school.
Pang felt very uncomfortable. Although he was spared punishment after the incident, he was still a participant, so he inevitably felt guilty. Especially after repeated reflection and introspection, he felt that he had indeed gone too far. He attended Lexi's birthday party today mainly to apologize to her.
But when he saw Le Xi being pushed in by Qi Hui in a wheelchair, he felt a tightness in his chest and couldn't say anything he wanted to say.
"Gege, thank you for coming!" Lexi called Pan Ge by her nickname with a smile. Although her face was pale, she was in good spirits.
“No…no need to be so polite…Happy…Happy birthday to you…” Pang stammered.
"Hehe." Le Xi scratched her head, a little embarrassed. She wanted to say something more, but Qi Hui stopped her.
“Baby, stop talking! The children are hungry. Look at them, they look like little wolves.” Qi Hui said gently to Le Xi, but his eyes never left Pan Ge. His gaze was sharp, like a warning or a threat, making Pan Ge feel nervous for no reason.
Amidst the noisy children and chattering adults, Pang felt somewhat out of place, watching the bustling crowd and listening to them talk about special education schools and establishing foundations to help deaf children. He was completely bewildered. It took him a while to understand that Lexi had done so much for the children at the special education school. He, who had initially found these children strange, now felt only guilt.
He looked up at Le Xi, who was reclining in a chair piled high with cushions, propping his head up with his hand and smiling at everyone. Shi Lu and Qi Hui on either side of him were showering him with treats, sometimes even feeding him with spoons and chopsticks. Pan Ge had initially found the ambiguous relationship between the three of them rather sordid, but now it seemed strangely warm. Besides, what right did he have to interfere in other people's private affairs?
Actually, I was wrong. Although Le Xi's actions brought shame to the class, the department, and even the entire college, and even resulted in the punishment of relevant teachers and students, implicating many people, perhaps it was too impulsive, or even a wrong way of handling things. But it was wrong of me to punish his mistake with another mistake.
Mustering his courage, Pan Ge picked up his glass, poured himself a full glass of baijiu, and stood up to walk towards Le Xi. Le Xi was engrossed in watching Xiao Xiao and Xiang Xiang bicker and didn't notice him. However, Qi Hui and Shi Lu beside him stood up at the same time, looking at him warily.
Qi Hui blocked him with his arm, probably knowing what he was about to do, and whispered in his ear, "Don't say anything, he doesn't know about the big-character poster." Pan Ge was stunned for a moment, then shook his head and sighed. Did he not even have the right to apologize?
"Brother?" Le Xi turned around and looked at Qi Hui, who was blocking Pan Ge's way, asking with a light laugh, "What's wrong?"
"No, nothing," Shi Lu, Qi Hui, and Pan Ge said in unison.
“You three, something’s up!” Le Xi said scrutinizingly.
"No way! I... I wanted to offer a toast, but your brother was worried I'd drink too much, so he told me not to!" Pan Ge swirled his glass and smiled.
"Oh! You're toasting me? Okay, okay! Thank you, Princess!" Le Xi said excitedly, as if she had been injected with chicken blood. She had Qi Hui help her up, and then Shi Lu poured a small glass of juice and held it in front of Pan Ge. "I can't drink alcohol right now, so I'll use juice instead. No one has ever toasted me before! Thank you, Princess!"
“No, you’re welcome!” Pang stammered. “I, I should thank you. And…and…I’m sorry.”
"Don't say sorry." Le Xi interrupted him, staring at the juice in her glass for a long time, then looked up at him calmly, and then at Qi Hui and Shi Lu on either side of her. "Actually, I was also wrong. If things could be done over again, I hope I never acted so impulsively in that matter."
Lunar New Year's eve
February 17th, Lunar New Year's Eve.
Previously, Le Xi had told Qi Hui that she didn't want to spend the New Year in the hospital, so Shi's mother invited them to her home. After all, Qi Hui and Le Xi didn't have any relatives in L City, and it would be too lonely for just the two of them and Xiang Xiang to spend the New Year together. After thinking it over, Qi Hui consulted with the doctor and got approval for two days off before deciding to go to Shi's house—after all, this was Le Xi's first New Year in L City, and Qi Hui hoped to have a lively celebration.
Qi Hui drove his Audi A8 to the hospital. Together with Shi Lu, he helped Le Xi pack his things and dressed him. After arriving at the parking lot, Qi Hui paused for a moment, then opened the back door and let Xiang Xiang sit in the passenger seat. Shi Lu and Le Xi sat in the back. Once in the driver's seat, Qi Hui saw in the rearview mirror that Shi Lu had his arm around Le Xi's shoulder, pulling him close and carefully adjusting him to a comfortable position. Qi Hui felt a pang of resentment, but quickly composed himself and started the car.
Because of the slippery roads due to the snow, the car was moving very slowly, and the few people in the car didn't speak, creating a somewhat somber atmosphere. The radio was playing traffic broadcasts, and the host was rambling on and on about New Year's greetings sent by listeners via text message.
“This is the first time I’ve spent Chinese New Year away from home,” Le Xi suddenly said.
"Well, in the North we eat dumplings on New Year's Eve. What do you eat in the South?" Shi Lu asked.
“We mostly eat dumplings where I’m from, but my mom’s wontons are really delicious.” Le Xi looked up and met Qi Hui’s eyes in the rearview mirror. “Right, brother?”
"Yes, Auntie's wontons are really delicious. I remember that among all the snacks she sold back then, the wontons were the best."
“Really? Too bad I don’t have the chance to taste it,” Shi Lu interjected.
"It's such a pity! We call wontons 'chaoshou' where I'm from. My mom makes red oil wontons, with a layer of bright red chili oil drizzled on top, and then sprinkled with chopped green onions and fried peanuts. You can smell that aroma all over the street!" Le Xi smacked her lips.
"Trying to eat it?" Qi Hui smiled and looked at him. "If you want to eat it, I'll have the hourly worker make you some."
"real?"
“Really. I hired a cleaning lady, and you know Aunt Shi isn’t feeling well these days, so I hired someone to cook the New Year’s Eve dinner.” Qi Hui glanced at Shi Lu’s expression of “I didn’t know that,” and slowly said, “Aunt Shi knows that too.”
In northern China, it's customary to wrap dumplings before midnight on New Year's Eve and eat them at the beginning of New Year's Day. When Qi Hui and his companions arrived at the Shi family's house, it was still early. They parked the car at the door, and Qi Hui quickly took a wheelchair from the trunk. Shi Lu helped Le Xi out of the car, and just as they were about to go inside, they encountered some elderly women who had come out to shop. Everyone smiled kindly at Le Xi and said, "Little Le is back for the New Year?" but they didn't mention his illness at all.
Upon entering, the cleaning lady was already there, kneading dumpling dough. Shi Lu was quite surprised by the huge piles of ingredients in the kitchen, including many expensive fish and seafood. Qi Hui explained that those were Le Xi's favorites, so he asked the cleaning lady to buy them as well.
"Have you bought the wontons?" Qi Hui asked the aunt.
"Huh? Brother, when did you ask Auntie to buy it?" Lexi asked curiously.
"When you were chatting with Teacher Shi," Qi Hui said softly, ruffling his hair with a smile.
After sending Xiangxiang to help the old lady and letting Lexi rest in Shilu's room, Qi Hui and Shilu stayed in the living room fiddling with the old-fashioned sofa. The sofa was a style popular in the 1980s; the back could be folded down to serve as a bed. Considering the health of Shilu's mother and Lexi, Qi Hui and Shilu discussed it and decided to fold the sofa down, cover it with thick cushions, and add several large throw pillows, so the two could recline on the sofa to keep watch over the New Year.
Mrs. Shi was helping the part-time cleaning lady prepare dumpling filling. Various bowls held different flavored dumpling fillings, mostly seasoned to Lexi's liking. To season the wontons, the cleaning lady specially made chili oil. Hot oil was heated in a pan until it smoked, then poured over chili powder mixed with salt and Sichuan peppercorns. After a sizzling sound, the chili powder bubbled up, and soon authentic red chili oil was born.
The smell of chili oil was pungent, and Le Xi woke up coughing. Opening her eyes, she saw Shi Lu and Qi Hui standing one behind the other. She smiled and said, "What are you doing? It smells so good."
"I'm making you wonton seasoning! You little glutton." Shi Lu chuckled as he leaned closer to Le Xi.