Chapter 139 He walked from the other end, his thin frame and straight back visible...

The two of them tacitly avoided mentioning that unpleasant incident again. For the next two days, Li Leshan took him around, showing him around Tiananmen Square to watch the flag-raising ceremony, walking the central axis of the Forbidden City, climbing the northern section of the Great Wall, the Summer Palace… basically, they visited everything they could. After all, it was a rare opportunity to come all this way, a journey of over twenty hours by train! They felt it would be a waste not to see as many famous scenic spots and historical sites as possible.

Jiang Yueming stayed in Beijing for a total of three days. He said he couldn't stay any longer, as the round trip by train would take two days. In short, including the actual time spent in Beijing and the travel, it would take a total of five days, which wasn't short.

"Damn," Jiang Yueming thought to himself as he looked at the overcrowded specialty store, "I could never squeeze through even in eight hundred years."

He also mentioned bringing back some local specialties for Cuicui and Tiantian, saying that Beijing's specialties couldn't compare to those from Shengping. What are Shengping's specialties? Homemade wine, tea, mooncakes… it's hard to say whether they have trademarks or not. One well-known product is a chili sauce, but the problem is it's too famous; it's available everywhere in the country, so there's no need to buy it.

"Why don't you wait for me outside?" Jiang Yueming hesitated.

Li Leshan gently squeezed his wrist; his fingers were a little cold. "No need, I bought some for you guys. They're in the dorm. I'll give them to you when you leave."

"Huh?" Jiang Yueming was shocked. "When did you buy it? How long did you wait in line?"

“Before National Day,” Li Leshan signified, “there weren’t many people then.”

He was worried that there would be too many people during the National Day holiday and it would be difficult to buy things, so he went to prepare in advance.

"It'll probably take at least half an hour or an hour," Jiang Yueming thought bitterly. "When is Beijing ever not crowded?"

"Have you eaten any of the things you bought?" Jiang Yueming asked again.

Seeing Li Leshan's hesitant expression, Jiang Yueming knew that he had never eaten it before and that he definitely wouldn't be willing to buy it for himself.

"I asked my roommate, and he probably didn't buy the wrong thing." Li Leshan asked Zhuang Jie, who was a local from Beijing. Zhuang Jie talked to Li Leshan for an hour about what to buy and what not to buy, what to eat and what not to eat. He talked about it with great passion, saying that there was no need to eat that ridiculously expensive roast duck.

Zhuang Jie said, "If you really want to eat something, just buy one from a roadside stall. It doesn't matter."

"You know that's not what I meant." Jiang Yueming said with a hint of helplessness. He didn't care whether the food tasted good or not. His voice lowered. "I just wanted to know if you've tried it."

“I’ve eaten it,” Li Leshan smiled at him, then quickly used sign language, “but I don’t like to eat these, you know that.”

Jiang Yueming was truly at a loss, unsure of what to say. Whatever she said, Li Leshan would only listen to what he wanted to hear and do what he wanted to do. He was always so kind to others; if he could treat even half that kindness to himself, Jiang Yueming wouldn't have to worry so much all the time.

“Lele,” Jiang Yueming said, holding his hand, “sometimes, I really don’t know what to say about you.”

My heart aches for him so much, but looking at his face, I can't say anything. I don't know how to say it, and there are some things I just can't say.

“I am,” Li Leshan looked at him earnestly, “Sometimes I don’t know how to talk to you.”

Perhaps neither of them had the right to judge the other. They both felt they hadn't given enough, hadn't loved enough, loved too lightly, and felt too deeply. This silent yet stubborn emotion continued to spread unnoticed, to the point that it was impossible to explain or articulate.

Beijing's nights are incredibly vibrant. The neon lights seem to run like they're free, almost never turning off all day long. There aren't a single shop closed on the streets; normally, Shengping would be deserted and pitch black by this time.

Living in a big city, Jiang Yueming felt incredibly small. She often stared blankly at the bustling streets, feeling that time seemed to speed up there.

The underground passage was dimly lit, with lights spilling onto the floor. The walls were covered with small advertisements—some for sex work, some for jobs, some for rent—layered and folded.

A song drifted into my ears, accompanied by the sound of a guitar. Despite it being the dead of night, the singer continued singing without stopping, his voice becoming hoarse. Unsure which song would attract even one or two passersby, he simply sang one or two songs continuously.

This small, square area is filled with people who pursue their dreams, have passions, and are willing to fight for their lives.

Standing here, Jiang Yueming inexplicably thought of his second maternal uncle, whose whereabouts were unknown. He remembered him stroking his head with his slightly rough hands and saying, "Mingming, the outside world is vast. You must go and see it for yourself someday." In all his years of traveling around the country, he must have walked here and measured this land with his footsteps.

This time it was his turn to walk this path. He stepped onto the hard cement ground, and the wind behind him pushed him forward. Jiang Yueming felt a little lost and suddenly didn't know where he was.

After pacing back and forth for a long time, Jiang Yueming suddenly came to his senses. He looked around at the unfamiliar crowd but couldn't find any familiar faces. He had no choice but to look forward desperately and finally spotted Li Leshan's back in the crowd.

His slender figure and straight spine resembled a tall poplar tree.

He always looked just like that; now, many years later, the little poplar has grown into a poplar tree.

Is he still the same boy who walked alongside him on the bridge in his memory? Is he still the same boy who memorized vocabulary under the locust tree?

Jiang Yueming frowned, squinted, and tried hard to see something clearly. It was clearly the same as in her memory, but there was something different about it.

Has he grown taller? Has his shoulders broadened? Or has his hair grown longer? Why does it always seem like something has changed?

Standing here, in this vast city, he seemed to finally understand the indescribable emotions he had felt at the school gate back then. Fate had unknowingly drawn a watershed; he and Li Leshan, perhaps, had never been on the same path long ago.

Li Leshan stood quietly at the other end of the crowd, the dim light casting a soft glow on him. He waved to Jiang Yueming, signaling him to come over.

right.

Jiang Yueming took a step forward.

Those who must leave, those who must be chased.

But his legs felt like they were filled with lead, each step heavy. It was as if he couldn't move forward, couldn't catch up. He suddenly felt that Li Leshan was very far away from him, as if he were from another world.

A gust of wind came out and gently brushed past Jiang Yueming's ear, making him involuntarily look up.

Then, Li Leshan came from the other side.

He came from the other side.

"What are you thinking about?" Li Leshan looked at him. "There are a lot of people, don't get separated."

After he finished signing, he immediately grasped Jiang Yueming's hand tightly. The warmth from his palm finally eased Jiang Yueming's tense heart.

The two walked one after the other, Li Leshan leading the way and Jiang Yueming following in his footsteps. Looking at Li Leshan, who was so close to him, Jiang Yueming's palms were slightly sweaty. Just touching Li Leshan's hand, he could feel the thin calluses on his fingertips and palm.

As they reached the entrance to the passageway, the myriad lights of Beijing unfolded before them. Jiang Yueming took a deep breath and grasped Li Leshan's hand in return.

He suddenly realized that what had propelled him to where he was today, to where he was now, was not the wind, but Li Leshan.