Chapter 30

Liang Xun's hometown in Kangfu is in an ordinary residential building. The house was obtained as compensation for the demolition of the old house of Liang's mother Liang Peiyan. It is some distance away from the city. Fortunately, the subway was later connected to the vicinity of the community, which can be regarded as having convenient transportation.

When he returned home with his suitcase, Liang Peiyan was eating porridge at the dining table alone. It was already late at night, so Liang Peiyan's meal was probably a midnight snack.

The dining table in their house was older than he was. On the lace tablecloth was a piece of thick glass with green edges. After dinner, they only had to wipe the glass surface with a rag.

Liang Peiyan had a mobile phone stand in front of her. She was probably watching a video sent from her mother's family group. She was so happy that she giggled and didn't notice Liang Xun behind her at all.

Liang Xun called out, "Mom."

"Ouch!" Liang Peiyan was startled. She turned her head and the moment she saw Liang Xun, she dropped the bowl and stood up, hugging Liang Xun in her arms. "Why did you come home without even telling me?"

Perhaps she felt that Liang Xun was being held too tightly by her and was almost breathless, so Liang Peiyan loosened her arms and twisted Liang Xun's shoulders again. After looking at him for a while, she said, "You've lost weight."

There is always concern for her child in the mother's eyes. Her gaze was like water, and her fingers gently stroked the hair on Liang Xun's head a few times.

She put away the leftover porridge and asked Liang Xun, "Do you want something to eat? Mom will make it for you!"

"It's okay, no need to bother, I'm not hungry either," Liang Xun shook his head. It was true that he had no appetite, and it was also true that he didn't want to worry his mother. "I've resigned and will be back home for a while."

Liang Peiyan was stunned when she heard this. She looked at Liang Xun intently, as if she wanted to ask something, but in the end she just pursed her lips and said, "Okay, of course. You've worked so hard these past few years. Mom is eager for you to stay at home for a long time."

Liang Xun forced a dry laugh. An inextricable gloom inhabited his body, as if his bones and blood had been eroded by an ancient glacier, never to return to their original state. But surprisingly, he didn't even feel the slightest desire to cry; even his eyes were dry.

The appearance of "Liang Xun" is still running normally, without any trace of bugs.

Liang Peiyan took out the bedding from the cabinet, and Liang Xun made the bed himself and washed up. He lay on the bed in his hometown after a long time. Although this was his own room, the one he was most familiar with and had spent the longest time with, Liang Xun did not feel sleepy at all.

He opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling in front of him. The house was old and the color of the paint on the ceiling had long been uneven. The parts exposed to sunlight had oxidized and turned yellow, and there were also some places with stains that he didn't know how they got on. Liang Xun stared at those marks, letting his mind empty and brewing sleep.

Liang Xun knew that no matter how sad he was, he would be healed a little after waking up from a good sleep. Although the effect might be minimal, as time passed, one day he would be completely unaffected by it.

For example, forget everything between you and Lin Shengwen.

Even so, he kept his eyes open until dawn.

The ceiling in front of him was like a movie screen, or perhaps a projector emerged from between his brows, and he began to recall the past.

That year he had just started college and lived in the school dormitory, but he didn't expect that one day when he went downstairs to attend his college's required courses, he saw his father downstairs.

The man looked at Liang Xun and called him by his previous name.

At that time, campus security management was not so strict. Even outsiders could enter and exit the university campus freely. Only the library and some laboratories had access control systems that required swiping cards.

His father probably took advantage of this opportunity, sneaked into the campus, and found out where he was staying in the dormitory.

Liang Xun's parents divorced when he was eight, and he hadn't seen this man since then. In his memory, he always looked carefree and unsatisfied with everything. When he saw him again after many years, he found that his hair had turned gray.

He was stunned for a few tenths of a second and said unhappily, "You got the wrong person."

"Can't I come to see my son?"

"You've got the wrong person. I have something else to do, so I'm leaving first." Liang Xun clutched his bag tightly and ran away as if fleeing, fearing that the man would catch up with him. He took big steps and was already out of breath when he ran to the nearest building.

Looking up, I saw the Ting City University Library.

Liang Xun usually never went into the library, but that day he took out his student card from his bag, swiped the gate at the library lobby, and walked in.

I definitely won't be able to attend this required class. Although the teacher said attendance requirements are extremely strict, being late and being absent are treated the same way. I might as well skip it. Liang Xun thought pessimistically, found a seat in the library study area, and sent a message to his classmates to let them know that he would be absent from the class.

After sending the message, he turned off his phone and pretended to scan the interior structure of the library. After looking at the building, Liang Xun also felt curious about the "good student representatives" sitting in the study room.

However, when his eyes swept across the group of people sitting not far in front of him, one of them caught his full attention.

He was such a handsome man that even the sunlight streaming in through the library window favored him, falling on the fair arm that was exposed when he rolled up his shirt. The light source was diffusely reflected, casting a halo over his entire body.

A strong impulse burst into Liang Xun's mind like fireworks.

Liang Xun was extremely convinced.

This must have been love at first sight.

All the negative emotions in his body were wiped out the moment he saw Lin Shengwen. Even though his father still came to him from time to time to disgust him and wanted to recognize him, Liang Xun would never again have trouble sleeping all day and all night because of seeing that man's face.

His love for Lin Shengwen gave him a new lease of life, as if everything was heading in a good direction.

He knew that his unrequited love was obviously not going to have any result, but he still couldn't help it. Only that time did his father finally decide to give up. He hadn't appeared in front of him for nearly half a month. Liang Xun heard that he had committed some crime and was imprisoned.

He didn't know why that day, perhaps impulse suppressed all his rationality, making him feel like he was in a trance. He tore a page from his notebook, wrote a few words of love on it, and when Lin Shengwen left the table, he put it in the big book.

After the impulse came regret. Liang Xun knew that he had made a mistake, so he destroyed the entire notebook that night and never dared to sit within five rows of Lin Shengwen's seat in the library again.

I don’t know whether it was a blessing or the most tragic result - Lin Shengwen never realized that he had a secret admirer named Liang Xun.

Liang Peiyan wakes up late in the morning, but she was rehired after retirement and now has to go to work four days a week, so it’s not too late for her to wake up.

Liang Xun vaguely heard his mother leave the bedroom and brush her teeth and wipe her face in the bathroom. After a while, his door was opened a crack.

Liang Peiyan originally just came to see if Liang Xun was still sleeping. If he was still sleeping, she would tiptoe out to work. But when she opened the door and met eyes with Liang Xun lying on the bed, she felt a little embarrassed.

"If you don't have anything to do today, go visit your aunt at the hospital. I'll send you the address and ward number." Liang Peiyan scratched her hair, untied the rubber band she had tied up when she washed her face, and hung it on her wrist. She added, "Get yourself something to eat. Mom's going to work."

"I understand." Liang Xun nodded.

Liang Peiyan closed the door for him, and soon she heard the door slam shut with a bang.

Liang Xun lay awake all night, fatigue mixed with a sense of confusion threatening to swallow him like a whirlpool, leaving no trace. Struggling to save himself, he slowly got up, ordered takeout, ate a few bites, and went to visit his aunt in the hospital.

My aunt's condition was not very good. The nurse who was accompanying her washed the fruit that Liang Xun brought for her, cut a few pieces for her and fed them to her before talking about her condition.

The glioma was in an awkward location, growing in the death triangle of the thalamus. Any damage during surgery could result in hemiplegia or even a vegetative state. The neurosurgery department at this hospital wasn't a top-tier department, and the doctors were hesitant about whether surgery was feasible. Conservative treatment only addressed the symptoms, not the underlying cause, and would only prolong the patient's life.

The nurse muttered, I heard from your aunt that you were in Ting City. Alas... There are many excellent doctors in Ting City's medical system. If you can be transferred to another hospital, the operation will be done in no time.

Liang Xun listened without saying a word. He couldn't help but think of Lin Shengwen. If it was Lin Shengwen, perhaps such a difficult operation would not be a problem for him.

His nose suddenly felt sore, and when he came to his senses, he saw a mist in front of his eyes.

Pei Ning climbed onto the bed and slid into Xu Yiming's quilt. He was so exhausted when he got home that he could barely lift a finger. Xu Yiming even took care of his bath, filling the tub with water and applying bath oil before rinsing him off.

He knew very little about his father's work. Some people thrived in situations dominated by official rhetoric. Although Pei Ning was unfazed and at ease in such situations, that didn't mean he was used to it. Fortunately, his father took his request to heart and quickly organized a meeting, explaining the situation to several leaders of the Discipline Inspection Commission.

On the day when the investigation team began to thoroughly investigate the problem of illegal reporting in Tingda No. 1 Hospital, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and returned to his own residence.

"Are you tired?" Xu Yiming patted his shoulders rhythmically and asked softly.

"Of course, but I can't help Liang Xun." Pei Ning's consciousness gradually faded, and he spoke sleepily and incoherently.

"...to help Liang Xun?" He had thought Pei Ning was busying around for Lin Shengwen—and the matter did involve Lin Shengwen. Judging from the results, what Pei Ning did was the fastest way he could help Lin Shengwen. Xu Yiming was deeply puzzled.

Pei Ning turned over and buried his face in the crook of Xu Yiming's shoulder. His words were so thick that his breathing was indistinguishable: "Liang Xun has liked Lin Shengwen for twelve years, and just because of something like this... I'm his best friend, how can I not help him... I'm tired, so be it..."

Xu Yiming narrowed his eyes and stopped questioning. He just kissed Pei Ning on the top of his head.

"Go to sleep."