Silent Era - Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Bai Sihuan had become much calmer this time around. He no longer yearned for home, nor did he cry inwardly over not fitting in with his family.

Occasionally, when he ran into Cheng Sutang, he’d politely call her “Auntie Cheng.” He’d become accustomed to her sarcastic remarks or her indifference, and no longer took them too seriously.

The two years he’d spent living in the old alley taught Bai Sihuan that changing his surroundings was pointless. He’d learned a lot during his years of growth. As long as he didn’t change himself, his life would remain the same no matter where he went.

Lin Heng began to treat him better, always bringing him a share of any good things he had. Due to his busy high school schedule, Bai Sihuan continued to live on campus. When he returned home for vacation, it was the rainy season of June and July.

Bai Sihuan’s room was damp and dark, and the bed and quilt were completely moldy. It had been drizzling for days, making it impossible to air the clothes. When Lin Heng arrived at Bai Sihuan’s room, the musty smell that greeted him made him frown.

He couldn’t believe the Lin family had such a place.

Lin Heng asked Bai Sihuan to sleep in his room that night. Bai Sihuan hesitated and asked, “There should be new bedding at home, right?”

Lin Heng replied, “New bedding is for guests. Your sheets can be washed and aired and used again. You don’t need new ones.”

Luckily, Lin Xianyan didn’t hear this; otherwise, she would have been horrified. This brother, who usually didn’t know how to write the word “thrifty,” would actually say something like “still useable.”

Bai Sihuan, used to poverty, felt that Lin Heng’s words made sense and felt quite ashamed of his own “extravagant” thoughts. Despite Lin Heng’s well-intentioned invitation, he remained undecided: “If Aunt Cheng knew…”

“Just go if I tell you to. Why all that nonsense?” Lin Heng said impatiently, warning him again, “Come to my room tonight, you hear me? If you dare not come, you’ll be fine.”

Bai Sihuan shuddered, remembering the time he’d been beaten for disobeying him. His fierce expression still haunted him.

That evening, after a long struggle, Bai Sihuan finally and awkwardly entered Lin Heng’s room.

Lin Heng had been waiting impatiently for a while. Seeing Bai Sihuan finally arrive, he immediately shooed Karen, who was sprawled beside him, off the bed.

Lin Heng wore only a white tank top, his muscular chest clearly visible. Despite a touch of willfulness, Bai Sihuan could see significant growth and change in him.

“Why are you here just now? I’m dying of sleep.” Lin Heng feigned a yawn, but he didn’t look tired at all.

Bai Sihuan said, “You can go to sleep first.”

“If I fall asleep and you come in, you’ll wake me up. I’m a poor sleeper, and I can’t fall asleep without the slightest noise.” Lin Heng said, “Come earlier next time, you hear me?”

“Next time?”

Lin Heng hummed a matter-of-factly. “It’s going to rain for a few more days, and your quilt and sheets won’t be out in the sun until it’s sunny. Of course, you’ll be sleeping here with me for the next few days.”

“Oh.” Bai Sihuan didn’t object. He slowly climbed onto the bed and stretched himself straight.

Lin Heng still had that bad habit of sleeping with something in his arms. With Bai Sihuan beside him, he would hold Bai Sihuan and sleep.

Karen lay on the ground, looking aggrieved at the place that once belonged to her now occupied by someone else. She curled up in a ball, getting used to her new nest.

The sky remained gloomy for days, and the rain continued for nearly two weeks.

That day at noon, Lin Xianyan went out for painting lessons. On her way back, her umbrella was crushed by the crowds on the bus. After getting off the bus, she used her sketchpad to shield herself from the rain and ran back. On the way, she tripped and fell into a puddle.

Bai Sihuan, who had just finished buying tutoring books, happened to see her and hurried down to help her up, then took her home.

In the days that followed, Bai Sihuan would take Lin Xianyan to painting lessons every day and pick her up on time.

The two of them didn’t say much along the way, but they seemed to have found a subtle resonance, and Lin Xianyan felt a sense of security in this quiet resonance.

This feeling grew in Lin Xianyan’s heart day by day, reaching a point where it was difficult to suppress. In the first ray of sunlight that broke through the dark clouds, she leaned against Bai Sihuan’s frail back.

Lin Heng witnessed this scene from his room, and that afternoon he went to have a good talk with his second sister, with whom he didn’t get along well, about her commute to school.

Lin Heng graciously lent his driver: “The driver’s free at noon, so you can have him take you to painting class.”

“You want Mom to scold me? You know what she hates most when someone uses the same things as you.”

“If she knew you were secretly learning to paint, wouldn’t she scold you just the same? You were already hiding your painting lessons from her, so why are you afraid of hiding one more thing?”

“I’m carsick. I can’t get used to sitting.”

Lin Xianyan refused his offer and firmly refused.

After all, they were family. Who could possibly be so unpredictable?

After all, their attempts to find Lin Xianyan had failed, Lin Heng naturally approached Bai Sihuan: “I had someone buy her a bicycle so she can go to and from school by herself.”

Bai Sihuan replied, “She doesn’t even know how to ride a bicycle.”

Lin Heng was stunned. After all, as siblings for so many years, this was the first time he knew Lin Xianyan couldn’t even ride a bicycle.

The thought that Bai Sihuan understood her better than he did himself made Lin Heng’s heart swell with anger. “If she doesn’t know how to ride, just learn. She’s grown up, and she’s already learned how to ride a bike, right?”

“How can she have the time to learn now?” Only Bai Sihuan knew that she spent more time commuting than painting. She was always busy with schoolwork on her way home, leaving her no time for bike lessons. Bai Sihuan said, “I don’t have anything special to do anyway, so I’ll just treat it as daily exercise.”

The two people’s repeated rejections made all Lin Heng’s efforts in vain. Lin Heng felt depressed and annoyed, but he didn’t know who to vent to or how to express his feelings. Perhaps he didn’t quite understand these feelings. He could only find some solace each night when he shared Bai Sihuan’s bed, reassuring himself that his mind was still clear and lucid.

However, something unexpected happened. The rainy season ended early this year, and the servants washed and dried the quilts and sheets in Bai Sihuan’s room. Bai Sihuan no longer had to sleep in Lin Heng’s room, but he still insisted on picking up and dropping off Lin Xianyan every day.

Lin Heng’s annoyance intensified with the end of the rainy season. One day, when his parents were not at the dinner table, his emotions accumulated to the point of boiling over. Because Lin Xianyan whispered something in Bai Sihuan’s ear, Lin Heng threw his bowl and walked out, skipping his meal.

Bai Sihuan didn’t understand what he was angry about, assuming it was because he accidentally tripped Karen that day.

When faced with Lin Heng’s anger, Bai Sihuan never apologized. Instead, he kept his distance, spoke and acted cautiously in his presence, and waited until his anger subsided.

One day, seeing Lin Heng coming downstairs from a distance, Bai Sihuan, who was about to go back up, turned around and looked for a place to hide.

“Stop.”

Lin Heng’s voice drifted down from above, tripping Bai Sihuan’s legs at his command, causing him to freeze in place.

Lin Heng slowly descended the stairs and slowly circled in front of him. “Why did you leave the moment you saw me?”

“I was afraid you’d see me angry.”

Perhaps never expecting the question he’d been agonizing over for so many days to have such an answer, Lin Heng paused for a moment, his expression suddenly shifting to a sneer. “Heh, if you spent less time with Ah Yan, I wouldn’t be angry.”

Bai Sihuan explained anxiously, “I didn’t lead her astray.”

“Who said you led her astray?” Lin Heng found that Bai Sihuan always had a way of saying things that left him baffled.

Bai Sihuan lowered his eyes and whispered, “Aunt Cheng always says she’s afraid you’ll be influenced by me and learn bad things from me.”

“Listen to her nonsense,” Lin Heng blurted out almost without thinking. “You…you should stay out of her company. After all, she’s the legitimate second daughter of the Lin family. How can she be with you all the time? If my mother saw us, she’d break half her leg first, not just you. Do you understand? Why are you lowering your head like that? Lift it up.”

Lin Heng reached out and pinched Bai Sihuan’s chin, lifting his head.

He saw that Bai Sihuan’s expression was filled with deep guilt and a hint of forbearance. His body trembled like a young hedgehog in danger, trying to raise all its spines, which were not yet hard enough.

Lin Heng’s heart stirred, and he lowered his chin, saying, “Just listen to me.”

“Listen to me”—it seemed like the motto Lin Heng was trying to instill in him for the rest of his life. Bai Sihuan had unconsciously been swayed by this motto. Whenever Lin Heng said “listen to me,” he would do as Lin Heng wished.

A week before school started, Lin Heng, for once, showed a rare shyness in front of Bai Sihuan. He took Bai Sihuan’s hand and softly asked, “Tomorrow, will you go out with me?”

Bai Sihuan felt a little uncomfortable at his sudden gentleness, and almost blurted out “yes.” But he quickly thought of his necessary review and the need to send Lin Xianyan to painting lessons, and said with hesitation, “But tomorrow I have to…”

Seeing he was about to refuse, Lin Heng shook his hand and said pitifully, “Please, brother. Tomorrow afternoon is fine. Just stay with me…”

This was the first time Lin Heng had acted coquettishly with Bai Sihuan, and Bai Sihuan was frightened, his heart beating wildly.

He asked cautiously, “What do you want me to do with you?”

Lin Heng almost gave him the answer, opening and closing his mouth slightly, and said mysteriously, “You’ll know tomorrow.”