"The Mortal Chapter Of Qing Zhuan" - Chapter 20

The Devoted Master

I was staring at the text message on my phone, and my mind was racing. “Yi Qing? Who is Yi Qing? Who sent this text? Did they send it to the wrong person?” I didn’t think too much of it, turned off my phone, and went to bed.

The seventh lord of the Hall of Karma was looking at a letter from the Goddess Nüwa.

“Gā Nuò Jì Jūn, ten thousand years ago, the ancient god Ling Yin and the soul Yi Qing had a great battle. Yi Qing mistakenly opened the door of karma and fell into reincarnation! The divine soul of Yùn Lì, Yán Lín, and the eighth prince of the demon clan, Xíng Fēng, also fell with her. Now the Seal of the Pillar of Providence has appeared, and Yi Qing has been reincarnated as Li Yuan. It is likely that Yán Lín and Xíng Fēng have also been reincarnated! I, in the name of the ancient gods, command you to find them immediately.”

Looking at the letter from the ancient god’s mountain, Gā Nuò Jì sent someone to look for Yán Lín. Then, he came to the Pillar of Providence and turned it to look for Xíng Fēng’s reincarnation. The Pillar of Providence could only see the reincarnation of the six realms and not the details. However, to see the details, he had to open the Eye of Reincarnation, which was why Yán Lín wanted to create the Sea of Inner Demons.

Gā Nuò Jì said, “Gāo Jìcháng! Xíng Fēng’s reincarnation is also in the human realm!”

“My lord, Yán Lín’s whereabouts are unknown for now! We only know that he went toward the Vermilion Bird…”

“The Vermilion Bird? The temple protected by Yùn Lì! Yán Lín is the divine soul of Yùn Lì, so he must have a lot of magical artifacts! He is deliberately hiding from me, so he must have a plan! I will report to the ancient god Nüwa and then make a plan! You may leave…” With that, I saw him use his divine wisdom to send a message back to the celestial mountain.

“So that’s it! Hán Dàn, have you heard from Líng Yīn lately?” The Goddess Nüwa looked at the letter in her hand with her head bowed.

“My lady, Hán Dàn recently went to Maple Mountain, but we didn’t get any news from the god Yùn Lì.”

“Líng Yīn! Your soul has finally appeared! She has been in a constant cycle of reincarnation for ten thousand years, changing constantly in the six realms! It’s time for you two to meet!”

The clouds of the celestial mountain surrounded her. The golden lotuses in the lotus pond bloomed. Hán Dàn accompanied her to the Pangu Divine Hall. “Pangu God, it’s been a long time! The heart you left in Líng Yīn’s body has already become the most pure and true god in the world! Now Líng Yīn is on the verge of falling into the devil’s path. We must let the two of them merge as soon as possible to avoid a disaster! The divine soul Yán Lín has done evil and brought disaster to the three realms. He also stole my divine artifacts and hid them in reincarnation to get revenge on Yùn Lì! The demon clan has been repeatedly invading my ancient god’s border lately, and the descendants of the divine tribe have been suffering! Sigh! If only you were still here! How great would that be…” As she spoke, the Goddess Nüwa couldn’t help but shed a tear.

I woke up and felt something soft and furry next to me. I opened my eyes and saw the cat sleeping soundly on my pillow. I stroked his little head and then stretched. I looked at the clear sky outside the window and yelled, “Mom, Mom…”

“What is it? Why are you calling me so early in the morning?”

“Hehehe, I’m hungry! What are we eating today?”

“Steamed eggs with rice porridge and last night’s leftovers!” My mom answered me while serving the rice.

After dinner, my mom took me to the cellar to get some cabbage. Just then, a black car stopped in front of our house. Then I saw Weng Yuan’s dad get out of the car. Of course, the key person, Weng Yuan, was also there!

They each carried a sack and walked toward my house. I was thinking to myself, “It’s not apples, is it!” As expected, sometimes having a good intuition is not a good thing. Two sacks, two sacks of apples! My mind went blank, and I felt both amused and annoyed. I really couldn’t figure out what Weng Yuan said to his dad to convince him to carry two big sacks of apples. What was he doing? Wasn’t he going to sell them for money? My dad tried his best to hide the joy he felt deep down, even though he was saying polite words!

“Oh, brother, what are you doing? How much is it? I’ll pay you. I can’t let you lose money. Apples are especially expensive this year, and yours are even candied apples!”

His dad said, “Oh, don’t be a stranger. You’re classmates, and the kids have a good relationship. What’s wrong with the kids eating some apples? Talking about money hurts feelings! My Weng Yuan’s English is not good. I was thinking of asking his sister to tutor him during the winter, but my daughter went on a trip! I saw their exam results the other day, and I saw that this little rascal got 148 in English, which is almost a perfect score. I asked him who it was, and he said it was Yuan Zi. When I heard that, I thought, ‘What a coincidence.’ I can’t let the kid tutor him for free. You guys definitely wouldn’t accept money, so I thought I’d bring some apples. For the kids to eat!”

With that, he looked at me and said, “Yuan Zi, next semester will be the third year of middle school. If Weng Yuan’s English doesn’t improve, it’ll be hard for him to get into Yuetan High School. I also saw that you have a lot of room for improvement in math. Why don’t you two tutor each other and try to get into the same school? You can help each other out in the future, right?”

He smiled at my dad and mom. My dad and mom were so happy about the apples that they didn’t hear anything else! They just nodded in agreement. Weng Yuan was so happy that his mouth was about to reach his ears, leaving me in a state of panic.

After Weng Yuan and his dad left, I immediately asked my dad and mom, “You two! You’re still happy! I don’t even want to be in the same school as him, and you two! Oh, you’re so greedy! You actually agreed to let him come here to study. You two were bought off by two sacks of apples? You’re a total failure. I’m so disappointed in you two, hmph!”

My dad and mom looked at each other and smiled. My dad said, “Wife, hurry up and put the apples in the jar. This is enough for us to eat until spring. Hahaha, these big apples are so good.” My mom nodded repeatedly, smiling and laughing with my dad. I was told to clean up the room to make space for Weng Yuan to stay. I thought to myself, “We harvested so much grain this year. The potatoes and sweet potatoes also had a great harvest. The side room has already become a granary, so no one can stay there. Why did my dad and mom have to agree to this? Sigh! When he comes, we’ll both be studying in this room. Normally, my mom would sleep with me at night. But what if we study too late and my dad and mom are already asleep? Then I’ll have to consider where to sleep at night, who sleeps at the head of the bed, and who sleeps at the foot of the bed. Ahhh, this is so annoying! How can I have such greedy parents! I’m so speechless!”

The next day, Weng Yuan came early in the morning with his big backpack and a travel bag, brought by his dad. This time, they also bought two boxes of beer for my dad, a box of Nutri-Express, a box of Eight-Treasure Porridge, and more… They also brought a big bag of snacks, but what surprised me even more was that they also brought a big rack of pork ribs for my family.

I shook my head helplessly. “It’s over. It looks like he’s going to be a permanent resident now!” My dad and mom warmly welcomed Weng Yuan’s dad, while I unhappily took Weng Yuan to my room.

I said to him politely, “Master, from now on, make yourself at home. Don’t be shy. If you need anything, just tell me, okay?” I tried my best to look happy, but I couldn’t even force a smile.

Weng Yuan was grinning the whole time. “Okay, good disciple.”

My mom cooked eight dishes. My dad and his dad were chatting happily. Weng Yuan was not as reserved as the first time. He ate heartily. My mom kept serving him food. It made me wonder who her biological child was.

In the afternoon, after Weng Yuan’s dad said goodbye to us, he told Weng Yuan, “Don’t make your uncle and auntie angry here. Help out with chores. Be observant. Get along well with Yuan Zi, and study hard. I’m leaving now. Don’t see me off.” With that, his dad drove away. My mom looked at us and said, “Okay, you two go study now.”

When we got to the room, he looked around and his eyes landed on the big yellow star. “Yuan Zi, this big star is pretty. Who gave it to you?”

I didn’t say anything and continued to organize my papers. He then saw the big jar of stars on my bookshelf. “Did your ex-boyfriend give you this?”

I looked at him helplessly. “Master, you seem to have a lot of free time? You’re even looking at stars. Come here and do your homework. We still have time to take a test.”

He tiptoed to the bed and sat down next to me, touching my arm. “Is it true, Yuan Zi? You haven’t answered my question yet.”

I quickly pulled my arm back and replied seriously, “No! Are you happy now?”

“I can fold these stars too. I’ll fold a few jars for you tomorrow.”

I looked at his proud expression and laughed. “No, thanks. I don’t have any more space for stars. They’re already taking up enough space.”

A little later, Gao called. “Da Yuan Zi, how was your rest? Can we start doing homework now?”

“Yeah, but don’t come today. There’s no place for you to sleep tonight.”

Gao asked in confusion, “Why? Even though your side room doesn’t have space, your big bed can still fit people. What, did you put food in your room too?”

I laughed and said, “Exactly, I put a big pile of food in there.”

Weng Yuan looked at me and immediately said, “Who are you calling food?”

Gao on the other end of the phone heard a male voice and became interested. “Oh, you’re hiding someone, huh? No wonder you didn’t want me to come?”

I quickly said, “No, I’m not hiding anyone. Come, come, come! If you don’t mind being crowded, then come!”

Gao said, “That’s more like it. I’ll be there in half an hour. Go put my blanket at the head of the bed to warm it up. Your young master is not leaving tonight! I want to see how crowded it is!” With that, he hung up the phone.

My mind was buzzing. I said to myself, “Oh my god, someone save me… This vacation is destined to be extraordinary…” I was so annoyed. It was all because of my big mouth for saying the apples were delicious. Thinking about this, I couldn’t help but slap myself in the face. This scene completely stunned Weng Yuan. He quickly touched my forehead. “You don’t have a fever! Why are you acting so crazy? Are you okay, disciple? How about I call him and tell him not to come?”

“It’s no use. You don’t know Gao. We grew up together. Even though we don’t live in the same village, our families are very close. He’s been staying at my house since he was a kid, and my dad and mom love him. He’s basically a part of my family. What are you going to stop him with? All I ask is that you two don’t fight. That’s all I need.”

When he heard this, Weng Yuan looked at me affectionately. “Don’t worry, good disciple, I won’t make things difficult for you.”

I nodded and motioned for him to continue doing his homework. A little later, Gao arrived, carrying his big backpack and humming a song. “My home is in the Northeast, on the Songhua River…” He went inside and said hi to my mom. “Auntie, are you watching TV?” My mom asked, “Jichang, why are you so happy?”

“I’m going to do my homework with Da Yuan Zi. After we’re done, we’ll go out and play, hahaha.” With that, he pushed open the door and came into my room. When he saw Weng Yuan on the bed, he widened his eyes and looked at Weng Yuan. “Alright, you rascal, you know how to have fun. You followed her from school to her house. You really have something, brother! You’re the one! I admire you!”

Weng Yuan looked at him with a grin and retorted, “Didn’t you come too?”

Seeing them start to argue the moment they met, I yelled in frustration, “Stop, you two, stop arguing. Hurry up and do your homework. After you’re done, you can go out and play, my two big brothers!”

After a while, the world was finally quiet again, except for the sound of pens on paper and the clicking of a calculator. This sound was so beautiful. I really loved a quiet atmosphere. Unfortunately, good times are always short.

With Weng Yuan’s dramatic sneeze, “Achoo ah ah ah ah…” Gao burst into laughter! “Weng Yuan, are you singing opera? Did that sneeze affect your performance?”

Then Weng Yuan retorted, “So what? Can you do it? Can you? Look at you laughing like an idiot, hahahaha…”

Gao pointed at him and said, “You look like a monkey trying to become a spirit. Hahahahahaha!”

The chattering sounds were about to break the roof. I frowned, feeling like I was in a zoo. I couldn’t take it anymore and slammed my hand on the table!

“Everyone, shut up! Do your homework quietly! From now on, no one is allowed to talk! Whoever talks is a monkey!”

Finally, the world returned to silence. I felt thirsty, so I picked up my cup and took a sip of water. When I looked up at Weng Yuan, I couldn’t help but spit water all over his face. It was because his expression at that moment looked exactly like a wronged monkey, with his eyes blinking, his mouth pouting, and his big goblin ears. My god, it was like I was back in the monkey episode of Animal Planet.

Gao on the side was trying to cover his mouth but couldn’t stop his magical laughter. His voice even broke, and he was cackling like a crowing hen.

I apologized repeatedly, “I’m so sorry, Master, I’m sorry. I, I didn’t do it on purpose. It’s just that your expression just now reminded me of something funny, so I couldn’t help it, hehehe hahahaha… I’m sorry, I couldn’t help it.”

Meanwhile, Gao was laughing so hard that he was rolling on the bed, holding his stomach, and Weng Yuan was getting funnier the more wronged he looked.

In the evening, after we had dinner, it was already 6:30. We watched some TV and then went back to the room to continue studying. It was almost 9 o’clock, and Gao, who didn’t want to leave, was called home by his mom.

Before he left, he said to us, “If the weather is good tomorrow, let’s all go to the city. We’ll contact each other on our phones, okay? I’m leaving. Oh, Weng Yuan, you’re not allowed to bully Da Yuan Zi! You hear me? Otherwise, I’ll give you a taste of my fists, you rascal!”

Weng Yuan looked at him with disdain and replied, “You think everyone’s like you? Just go already, hmph!”

Gao said playfully, “Oh, is Monkey Brother angry? Hahahaha…”

When Weng Yuan heard this, he glared at him. “You demon, eat this!”

My mom on the side looked at the two of them and laughed, covering her mouth. I laughed so hard that I got a stitch in my side. Looking at Weng Yuan’s expression, I thought to myself, “These two are so funny.”

There wasn’t a single breeze outside. The moon in the sky was so bright. As I walked back to the house after seeing Gao off, I looked up at the sky. The stars were twinkling, and a long milky way stretched across the sky, making me feel the vastness of the universe! In comparison, the human beings under this starry sky seemed so insignificant.

I breathed into my hands and rubbed them together. Weng Yuan saw this and grabbed my hands, breathing into them and rubbing them. I was startled by his actions and quickly pulled my hands out and put them in my pockets.

“What are you doing!”

“I was just afraid you were cold! I wanted to warm your hands!”

“Weng Yuan! I have pockets! Just warm your own hands! Let’s go back inside before you catch a cold!”

Weng Yuan looked at my back, and a hint of loneliness appeared in his eyes. He followed me back to the house.

When we got back to the room, my mom and dad were already asleep. The TV show they were watching was still playing. I was about to wake my mom up. Weng Yuan pulled me to the side and whispered, “They’re all asleep. They’re probably tired from working all day. Don’t wake them up. Let’s turn off the TV and go back to the room.”

I looked at him in confusion and whispered, “Where are you going to sleep tonight?”

He blinked his big, beautiful eyes and said, “I’ll find a spot at the foot of the bed in your room.” I sighed and nodded, then turned off the TV.

I looked at him, and he looked at me. Our eyes met, and it was so awkward!

“You can sleep at the head of the bed. No matter what, you’re a guest. How can I let a guest sleep at the foot of the bed?” So I made his bed at the head of the bed. I made my bed at the foot of the bed. He looked at me again. I asked in confusion, “What’s wrong? Do you have a problem?”

“If you’re going to change your clothes, I’ll turn off the light, or I’ll go to the outer room. You can change and then call me in, and I’ll come in and you can go to sleep.”

He said shyly, “No, the outer room is too cold. Don’t go there. Just turn off the light and change.”

A little later, I heard him chuckling to himself.

“What are you laughing at?” I asked in a low voice.

“I think the zipper on my pants is broken. It won’t go down.”

I heard that and started laughing too. “Your pants, hahaha! Why don’t you turn on the light? I’m already changed. You can turn on the light and change. I’ll turn my back to you and won’t look.”

So, he turned on the flashlight on his phone and started working on the zipper on his pants. After a while, he poked my blanket with his hand in embarrassment. “Yuan Zi, are you, are you asleep?”

I answered him groggily, “No, what’s wrong now?”

He asked softly, “Yuan Zi, do you believe in love at first sight?”

I was about to fall asleep but was suddenly wide awake and amused. I answered him groggily, “Weng Yuan, Weng Yuan, do you not have anything else to talk about? Why do you ask me this question every time you get a chance? Do you have some obsession with love at first sight? Weng Yuan, you keep asking me, are you in love with me?”

I don’t know if I was half-asleep or what, but I actually said what was on my mind. He suddenly crawled over and lay on the bundle between us. “You, you knew all along, then are you willing to accept me?”

I didn’t even have time to react, and I asked him with a stutter, “Accept what?”

He said softly, “Accept me as your boyfriend.”

When I heard that, I was instantly sober. I got up and scared him. I fumbled for the light switch on the wall and turned it on, staring at him!

“Are you crazy? It’s the middle of the night, and you’re not sleeping! Besides, when did I ever agree to be your girlfriend? And what’s more, the high school entrance exam is coming up soon. How do you have time to be in a relationship? If you’re here to be in a relationship, then you can go home tomorrow. I’m telling you very clearly, Weng Yuan, it’s impossible for us to be together! We can be good friends, but not lovers. There’s no way. Do you understand?”

Weng Yuan looked at me innocently. “Do you really not want to give me any hope?”

I sighed. “Sigh, Weng Yuan, I’ll be honest with you. It doesn’t matter who it is! I won’t be in a relationship with them! Because I really, truly don’t have the mind to be in a relationship right now! I want to get into Yuetan High School, so I have to focus all my attention on my studies! If I study hard, I’ll have a good future, right? And I, oh, how do I explain this to you! I don’t have anyone I like right now. Like you said, love at first sight, I haven’t experienced it! So how can I accept someone I have no feelings for! If I agree, that would be unfair to you and irresponsible to myself. Do you understand? I hope you can focus on your studies! You have a great foundation! I don’t want to see you waste it like this! Study hard, get into the university of your dreams, and then find the one! Don’t waste your time and energy on someone who isn’t worth it. It’s not worth it, do you understand?”

Weng Yuan’s big eyes were welling up with tears, and his eyes gradually turned red. He lay down and turned his back to me. After a long time, he choked out a word, “Okay!”

I seemed to hear his soft sobs, but that’s just how the world of feelings is. I don’t think I hurt him, and I don’t think he’s wrong, but the world of feelings is just so ruthless. There’s no right or wrong, only attraction and giving. The best love is two people on the same frequency, who are attracted to each other, support each other, and finally reach the peak together and hug each other on the top! Not a one-sided self-感动.

When I woke up in the morning, Weng Yuan had already folded his blanket and was not in the room. So, I put on my clothes and went downstairs to look for him. My mom said, “You lazy girl, look, Weng Yuan is already up. He’s helping your dad chop wood in the yard!”

I asked in astonishment, “What? What are you two doing?! First, you made him feed the pigs, and now you’re making him chop wood! Are you really treating him like a servant?” “You, Dad, what are you doing! Why do you keep making him work?” I said to my dad angrily.

“No, I told him I wanted to help Uncle! Yuan Zi, don’t talk to your dad like that! Besides, I do this kind of work at home all the time!”

“You child, look at Weng Yuan, he’s so sensible!” My dad gave me a look and then threw the axe and went back inside.

“Yuan Zi, I know you mean well, but I can’t control myself. It’s like I’m poisoned and I’m falling in love! Can you give me some time?”

Looking at him with his dark circles, I nodded helplessly. “Okay, but you’re not allowed to do anything that crosses the line! Understand?”

“Okay! Don’t worry, Yuan Zi…”

“Good morning, Monkey Brother! Oh, Monkey Brother is chopping wood?” Gao came early in the morning with his backpack.

“Jichang is here. Hurry, wife, is dinner ready?” My dad happily went to greet Gao.

“Let’s go, Jichang, go home and wash your hands. Get ready to eat! Hahaha… You’ve grown taller, hahaha…”

Weng Yuan looked at my dad, who was hugging Gao’s neck and walking with him. He saw my mom enthusiastically helping Gao with his backpack. A look of loneliness appeared on his face. I walked up to him and patted his shoulder. “This is normal! My dad and mom are always like this when Gao comes back. You’ll get used to it. Let’s go home and wash our hands and eat!”

My dad took out the big chicken drumstick he specifically saved for Gao yesterday. I went up with my chopsticks to grab it, but my dad quickly raised his hand, and I grabbed nothing but air. “What are you doing! This is for Jichang! Didn’t you get to eat yesterday?” My dad gave me a look and then put the chicken drumstick in Gao’s bowl with a smile.

“It’s so good! So good! Do you want a bite?” Gao dangled the chicken drumstick in front of me.

“You eat it! It was saved for you! Eat it!” I ate the stir-fried garlic shoots with meat and rice. Weng Yuan looked at me, not minding that Gao had eaten from it! He also saw the spoiled look Gao gave me. He slowly understood how ridiculous his actions were!

“What are you thinking, Monkey Brother? Eat!” Gao teased him.

At noon, Gao said, “Let’s go to the small pavilion! Monkey Brother, do you want to check it out?”

“Oh! No, thanks. You two can go! I, I have something to do at home. I’ll be going home soon!”

“Why are you leaving so soon, Monkey Brother? How are you going to get back?”

“My dad is coming to pick me up! He’ll be here soon! You two go! Have a good meal!”

I looked at his lonely expression and guessed what was going on. The sound of a car horn rang out at the gate, and Weng Yuan left with his backpack. We went out to see him off. My dad looked at his dad with a questioning look. “Why are you leaving so soon? Stay for a couple more days! The kid is finally here!”

“No, no, his grandmother is in the hospital! I have to take him home!”

My mom asked anxiously, “Oh! It’s nothing serious, right?”

“No, no, she just fell. It’s nothing major!”

“Brother, I’m a traditional Chinese medicine doctor! If you need any help in the future, just let me know!” My dad said sincerely, shaking his dad’s hand.

His dad nodded. “Okay! Go home now! Don’t catch a cold. It’s so cold!”

After seeing Weng Yuan off, Gao looked at me. “Let’s go! Let’s go eat Snow Flake Bean Paste!” I nodded and smiled at Gao. “Let’s go!”

My mom came in and saw us walking out. She asked in confusion, “Where are you two going? It’s the coldest part of winter!”

“Hehe, to the small pavilion!”

My mom gave Gao a look. “What’s so great about that small pavilion?! You two are going there to eat? What’s so delicious? I can make anything, so why do you have to go there and spend money?”

I said, “You can make anything? Mom, if you can make Snow Flake Bean Paste, we won’t go!” With that, I saw the awkward expression on my mom’s face. Then, my mom gave us money and said, “Go, go, hurry up and go! Really! Why do you have to eat that dish? Go, go, and don’t forget to get me a portion to go.”

The weather outside was so unpredictable. It started snowing again. Gao looked at me and asked, “Why did he leave today?”

“Didn’t you hear? His grandmother is in the hospital.”

“I don’t think so! His dad’s expression looked a little awkward. I didn’t see any urgency.” With that, he looked at me up and down and asked, “Did something happen between you two?”

I gave him an eye roll! “What are you thinking? Of course not! But, something did happen after you left.”

Gao quickly asked, “See, I told you that rascal had a motive. Did he bully you? Tell me, you’re a girl, why don’t you have a little more self-respect?”

I was speechless by what he said and quickly interrupted him. “Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing? Nothing happened between us, so don’t talk nonsense. It’s just that I clearly rejected him last night. And I think I made him cry.”

He looked at me in shock. “Let’s go, let’s go! Let’s go to the small pavilion to warm up and talk!” I looked at the icy road and suddenly smiled at Gao. Gao nodded helplessly.

“Crouch down! Don’t fall and hurt your butt!”

Then Gao pulled me, and we slid forward. I felt the world around me moving! The wind whistled in my ears, and our laughter echoed throughout the snowy ground…

When we got to the small pavilion, I told him what happened last night. Gao almost choked on his water. “Cough, cough! Cough, cough, you said he cried? You made him cry? How did you do that?” I looked at Gao innocently!

“Well, this is what happened… Oh, I’ll be honest with you. Didn’t you leave last night? I was standing at the door looking at the stars for a while, and then I felt a little cold. Then he warmed my hands! It scared me, and I pulled my hands out and went back inside. I wanted to ask my mom to sleep in my room, but I saw her and my dad were sleeping soundly, so he suggested not to wake them up. I thought, ‘Okay, it’s fine. If we sleep together, one at the head of the bed and one at the foot, it’s not a big deal.’ So I went back to the room. But when we were about to go to sleep, his pants wouldn’t come off, and he asked me to help him. Then the zipper wouldn’t go down…”

At this point, Gao’s expression gradually became confused, and he interrupted me. “What? Are you saying he held your hand first? Then he slept in your bed, and then he asked you to sleep with him?” I looked at him in shock, my eyes wide. “No! What are you hearing?!” I was both amused and annoyed and immediately cursed at him. “Are you crazy? When did I say I was sleeping with him? I said his zipper wouldn’t go down, and he asked me to help him pull his waistband!” Gao put his hands together and rested his chin on them, frowning and saying with a chuckle, “And you even pulled his waistband? Are you going to say that the next part of the story is! No matter how hard he pulled, it wouldn’t go down, and then he kneeled in front of you and asked you to help him pull his waistband while he pulled down? And then he used too much force and fell on you, pouncing on you! Is that what happened?”

I stared at him in shock, my mouth wide open, looking completely unbelievable. Just then, Uncle Yin brought two plates of food. Gao immediately took a piece of Snow Flake Bean Paste and put it in my mouth. I chewed and asked, “Gao, how did you know? That’s incredible. That’s exactly how the story went, but how did you figure that out?” Gao looked at my innocent expression, shook his head, and said helplessly, “Child, don’t you watch idol dramas? Isn’t this a common plot in TV shows? I’m so done with you!”

My jaw dropped! “What? This is a TV show plot?” Gao looked at me firmly and nodded. “Yes, this is the most popular and trendy plot in idol dramas! It’s a cliché!” I was so shocked that I covered my mouth and looked at him in disbelief! I took a bite of sweet and sour pork, chewed for a while, and then said to him seriously, “But, Gao, I told him very clearly afterward that we couldn’t be together! Then I lectured him, and who knew that I would make him cry. He left this morning. You know the rest! That’s it! I just don’t understand why this happened. I don’t get it!”

Gao analyzed carefully, then pushed his glasses up and took another piece of Snow Flake Bean Paste, chewing it slowly. After he swallowed the Snow Flake Bean Paste and took a sip of rose tea, he said, “It looks like that kid’s ego was hurt, I guess.”

“Really? Is it that big of a deal?”

Gao sneered. “Hmph, is it a big deal? For you, it’s a small thing, but for him, it’s hard to say. He caused such a big scene at school, and in the end, you rejected him so decisively. I’m guessing he doesn’t feel good inside.”

I immediately asked, “Then what should I do? If it was too big of a blow for him, will he do something crazy? Do I need to comfort him? But I don’t think I should! He’s a man, is it that big of a deal?”

Gao kept eating the Snow Flake Bean Paste with a straight face and didn’t answer my question. I also picked up my chopsticks and shoved a piece of Snow Flake Bean Paste into my mouth. Just then, Gao suddenly said, “Let’s wait and see. Let’s see how he reacts when school starts again. Hurry up and eat. Why are you thinking about useless things? You’re just making things harder for yourself! Eat, eat, eat!”

When we got home, my mom looked at the Snow Flake Bean Paste we brought back for her. She picked up a piece, looked at it from all angles, and showed a look of admiration. Then she slowly put it in her mouth and chewed it carefully. “Hmm! This tastes really good! How do you make this dish? It’s so delicious!”

My dad looked at my mom, who was nodding and praising the dish, and he couldn’t wait to eat one too. He chewed it a few times and also showed a look of satisfaction.

“My dear daughter, Weng Yuan’s grandmother is in the hospital, shouldn’t we go visit her?”

I looked at my dad’s chubby cheeks and said, “Yeah, I think that makes a lot of sense! But I don’t know where she is! How are we going to go?”

After a while, my dad said, “Why don’t you call him and ask? After all, he brought so many things! It would be rude not to call and ask! We have to do it for appearances!”

Gao chimed in, “Uncle, that makes sense! We have to ask to show our concern!”

I sent him a message, “Weng Yuan, how is your grandmother?”

Finally, during dinner, a message popped up on the screen. “She’s okay!”