Seeing him open his mouth and then close it again, Ji Li asked, "How come you..."
Before he could finish speaking, the other person suddenly reached out and hugged him.
He was taken aback.
Ying Yunsheng said, "I miss you so much."
Such blunt words are really not something someone who would normally blush for half a day after being teased would say.
Ying Yunsheng's voice was hoarse from the wind, and the last syllable trembled softly: "I miss you. Please hug me, okay?"
Ji Li slowly raised her hand and hugged his body tightly.
The wind was strong, but the two of them were breathing quietly. Occasionally, a car would whiz by with its lights on. On the other side of the wall behind them, residents were dragging their tired bodies home from get off work. Before they even entered their homes, they could hear people upstairs opening their windows and urging, "Come up and eat quickly!" The vendors' shouts and the sizzling smell of cooking oil filled the air. Their chests pounded together in rhythm, the tremors resonating deep within their hearts.
Ji Li still remembered what she had just wanted to say: "Next time, come out through the main entrance."
“But there’s still a year and a half left in high school,” Ying Yunsheng said softly. “We might have to leave again any day.”
Ji Li immediately dismissed his idea: "Next time I'll go get the leave slip in advance."
"Well……".
The mala tang restaurant was less than 20 meters away from where they came from. The newly opened store was offering promotional activities, and the tables and chairs inside were still mostly full.
But the taste was indeed good, and it did not disappoint the large number of customers.
Although Ji Li is not as picky about food as before because he was fed a string of candied hawthorns before, this kind of oily and spicy food is still not on his menu. He ordered tomato soup base instead.
As he sipped the sweet and sour soup with a spoon, he looked up and saw that Ying Yunsheng's lips were bright red.
It looked like it was dripping blood.
"Is it too spicy?"
Ying Yunsheng shook his head: "No."
He's not a picky eater; there's basically nothing he won't eat, but he's not the type to handle spicy food particularly well either.
If I had to describe it, I'd say it's something like someone who's picky about food but also loves to eat.
Ji Li looked at the sweat on his forehead, glanced around the store, and, not seeing a freezer, stood up and said, "I'm going out for a bit."
"oh."
There was a small shop just outside the store. Ji Li took two cans of soda from inside and placed them on the cashier's counter.
The shop owner at the cashier was busy playing games when he looked up and saw him, his eyes suddenly widening.
After waiting for a while without the other party speaking, Ji Li called out, "Boss?"
"Huh? Oh." The shopkeeper glanced down at the item. "It's five yuan in total. Scan the code."
Ji Li paid the bill, took the drinks back to the table, pulled the tab on one of the cans, inserted a straw, and pushed it over.
He sat down with his back to the shop door, not seeing the person following behind him, and took a picture with his phone.
The flash was on, and "click," it mingled with the boiling soup pot and the conversations of the customers in the restaurant.
Ji Li suddenly turned around.
Ying Yunsheng looked at his actions and asked, "What's wrong?"
Ji Li shook his head: "It's nothing."
With a quick glance, he couldn't be sure, but one of the figures passing by was dressed somewhat like the shopkeeper he had just visited.
A note from the author:
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 40
Chapter 40
Fireworks
It was already past eight o'clock when we finished eating.
Ji Li followed Ying Yunsheng back to the front door of the other party's house.
Ying Yunsheng changed his shoes and turned to say something.
Ji Lixian said, "I'll leave my luggage here for now. I'll go upstairs to clean and then come back down to get it."
Ying Yunsheng: "..."
Ji Li didn't go in; he just stood outside. After speaking for a while without receiving a reply, he asked, "What's wrong?"
Ying Yunsheng was still holding the soda that Ji Li had bought earlier, the can unconsciously crumpled a little: "You're not planning to stay here?"
Ji Li listened and said, "I do live here."
His home was just one floor above Ying Yunsheng's.
Ying Yunsheng understood the hidden meaning in his words, his expression remained unchanged, but the anger in his eyes was almost palpable: "Are you going up now?"
"Um."
Ying Yunsheng took the keys again and went out: "Let's go, I'll help you."
The upstairs apartment has been vacant for more than four years and has two floors, so it would be very time-consuming and laborious to clean it thoroughly.
Before Ji Li came, he paid the water and electricity bills. The towels hanging in the bathroom hadn't been used for a long time, so he simply used them as rags.
He handed a rag to the other person, leaning against the wall as he soaked it in water: "Still angry?"
Ying Yunsheng held the rag under the tap: "I'm not angry, why would I be angry?"
"Uh..." She wasn't exactly a naive and innocent girl, but when she was with him, all her thoughts were written on her face.
Ji Li chuckled, "Even if I really lived in your house, you still wouldn't be able to do anything, would you?"
Ying Yunsheng paused for a few seconds before realizing what he meant. His ears burned, and without looking at him, he silently rubbed the rag, saying, "I just want to be closer to you."
Logically, this should be a good opportunity to make fun of someone.
But Ji Li, unusually, did not press her advantage. She simply looked at him quietly for a while, then suddenly said, "I'll tell you a secret. Will that make you feel better?"
Ying Yunsheng remained silent, neither agreeing nor refusing.
Ji Li continued speaking to himself, "Do you know why I suddenly transferred schools four years ago?"
Ying Yunsheng had originally decided not to speak, but he couldn't help but break down after the other person said just one sentence: "Isn't it because of illness?"
“It’s because of illness,” Ji Li smiled. “But to be more precise, it’s because of a car accident.”
Ying Yunsheng paused in his action of wringing out the rag.
Actually, he had wondered before. They had been classmates in Tingfeng Lane for four years. Apart from not attending physical education classes or participating in extracurricular activities, the other person had hardly ever taken sick leave. Why did the other person suddenly fall ill, and even become so seriously ill that he had to leave?
“My mother came back to visit me once four years ago. She took me to town and the accident happened,” Ji Li said. “I was there at the time and witnessed her passing away.”
Ying Yunsheng wasn't sure what expression he had on his face, but he guessed it probably wasn't very good.
“My situation is much better because the car was aimed at her; I was just an afterthought.”
Ying Yunsheng keenly noticed his choice of words: "Is it aimed at her?"
Ji Li hummed in agreement: "It was premeditated."
Ying Yunsheng's fingers, hanging by his side, suddenly curled up.
“I’ve said it before, she’s an outstanding art appraiser,” Ji Li said. “That’s why she also has many enemies.”
Ying Yunsheng: "Can cultural relic appraisal also attract enemies?"
"Businessmen are easily kidnapped, politicians are easily assassinated, scientists developing new products may be detained by foreign countries, and a medical expert's occasional failure may be the source of a medical dispute. Since these jobs are prone to disputes, why not cultural relic appraisal?"
Ji Li also wet the rag with water: "Anyone who reaches the top in a certain industry and has many interests involved will find it impossible to live a truly peaceful life. Besides, the value of cultural relics involved in archaeology can easily be astronomical figures that an ordinary person could not earn in a lifetime. Once such a temptation is placed in front of them, how many people can remain unmoved?"
Ying Yunsheng remained silent.
“The car accident was premeditated. The police told me about it later. The driver has been imprisoned, and I had to temporarily suspend my studies because of my illness.”
After Ji Li finished telling the story, he turned off the tap, wrung out the towel, and said, "That's all. You go wipe the room, and I'll wipe the living room."
Ying Yunsheng took the towel and went out.
The moon peeked out from behind the clouds outside the window.
After the two finished cleaning the house, Ying Yunsheng helped him bring up the luggage he had left downstairs.
"Thanks."
Ying Yunsheng didn't say "You're welcome," but instead said, "If you want to thank me, may I make a request?"
Ji Li blinked: "Tell me about it."
Ying Yunsheng then said, "Can I hug you one more time?"
Ji Li was taken aback.
In Ying Yunsheng's view, holding hands without a name or status is considered immoral, and hugging requires the other party's consent.
The reason I was standing under the wall just now was due to an emotional outburst, which was a special case.
Ji Li nodded.
Ying Yunsheng hugged him, patting his back gently to comfort him.
Ji Li immediately understood why he would make such a request: "Are you trying to coax a child?"
Ying Yunsheng showed no mercy: "You are a minor."
“Even a minor is older than you.”
"Uh..." The topic of age was clearly not going to go anywhere.
Ying Yunsheng released him: "Get some rest."
Ji Li nodded: "Good night."
.