Chapter 76 P - Heart Lock
Chu Beiling reached out to block Wang Caiyan from opening the door and going in.
Stopped abruptly, Wang Caiyan was displeased and even more suspicious that something terrible had happened inside. She said sternly, "Chu Beiling, are you trying to rebel? Take your hand away."
Chu Beiling neither spoke nor moved.
Wang Caiyan frowned, about to speak, when the door to the equipment room opened and Li Dong and Sheng Xia came out: "Teacher Wang."
Wang Caiyan looked at the four people suspiciously: "What are you doing? Is this a gang crime?!" She craned her neck to look behind her, but didn't see anything.
Li Dong explained without batting an eye: "My bra strap fell off, and I couldn't wait to get back to the dorm, so I asked Sheng Xia for help. I was worried someone might come in, so I asked Chu Beiling to keep an eye on it for a while."
Wang Caiyan's expression was still not very good. She lectured Li Dong not to say the word "underwear" in front of the two boys, saying it was too embarrassing and that girls should be more reserved.
She went on and on, then looked at Chu Beiling and accused him: "A girl is doing something private inside the door, why don't you call a girl over to watch her? Why do you have to watch by yourself? What are you trying to do?"
Chu Beiling was speechless: "I'm just guarding the door. If I really wanted to do something, I wouldn't be outside the door."
Wang Caiyan said unhappily, "You're still trying to argue. If you're not guilty, why are you blocking the door?"
Xing Yu explained, "I was there too. Even if we're all women, we should respect each other's privacy."
Wang Caiyan: "You must have just been passing by."
Xing Yu: "..." His gaze turned to Chu Beiling beside him.
Chu Beiling smirked, making no attempt to hide his mockery.
Wang Caiyan's prejudice against him was established at the beginning of the first year of high school. In addition, when he disagreed with some of Wang Caiyan's statements, he would protest and refute them, which often displeased Wang Caiyan.
It's unclear whether Li Shuying also said something to her.
In the other person's eyes, he was a troublemaker who often led the way in doing bad things. Whenever something big happened in the class, Wang Caiyan would think of him first and would not ask why, assuming that it was him and that no one else was at fault.
Chu Beiling never explains anything to anyone who is dissatisfied with him or prejudiced against him, nor does he need to prove anything to them. As long as he has a clear conscience, he doesn't care how others view him.
Nevertheless, he still felt wronged, helpless, and angry.
Chu Beiling looked at Xing Yu. It seemed that Xing Yu was the only person in the world who would unconditionally trust him, firmly choose him, and be willing to tolerate him.
Wang Caiyan didn't give them a chance to speak, gave them a lecture, and then walked away in her high heels.
The group exchanged glances, all seeing a sense of speechlessness in each other's eyes.
Xing Yu: "I'm sorry."
Chu Beiling: "That's her prejudice against me, it has nothing to do with you."
Xing Yu: "Don't take her words too seriously."
Chu Beiling shook her head: "No." Then she looked at Li Dong: "Let's talk."
Li Dong was taken aback for a moment, then said, "Okay." He then told Sheng Xia, "Go back to your dorm and pack up first, I'll be right back."
Xing Yu and Sheng Xia walked downstairs, while Chu Beiling and Li Dong turned around and went up to the rooftop of the art building.
It was midday, and because of the overcast and rainy weather, the sky was gray and foggy. The whole city seemed to be shrouded in a white, damp mist, with a putrid smell, and no hope or time seemed to be passing.
Li Dong leaned against the railing, turned her head to look at him, and said, "Thanks for earlier." After pausing for two seconds, she continued, "Do you want to ask about me and Sheng Xia, or just yourself?"
"Are you two dating?" Even though he had a general idea, Chu Beiling still wanted to be sure.
Li Dong smiled faintly: "That's obvious, isn't it?"
Chu Beiling: "You and Sheng Xia are both girls."
Li Dong shrugged, looking indifferent: "So what? I'm gay. What, you mind? You think we're weird too?"
"How could that be? I only feel worried and heartbroken." After a moment's hesitation, Chu Beiling asked, "How did you find out that you are...?"
He still couldn't bring himself to say the word "homosexual" as easily as Li Dong.
Li Dong frankly said, "I knew it when I found out that I was only interested in girls and only wanted to date girls. Otherwise, with you in front of me every day, I could have resisted and would have won you over long ago!"
Chu Beiling paused slightly, then chuckled softly, "I'll take that as a compliment."
Li Dong laughed along, "Who told me to be a sucker for good looks and never compromise myself."
Accepting that she is a lesbian is not a difficult thing, after all, both of her mothers are. From a young age, her two mothers told her that they were no different from other people's parents, except that she had two mothers.
What's rare is that the person she likes isn't someone like her.
Fortunately, it's also in the height of summer.
If this hadn't been discovered today, Li Dong might not have brought it up.
Relationships are a matter between two people; it's pointless for outsiders to interfere or offer advice.
Moreover, they are homosexuals.
Being gay and yearning for a straight man, yet unable to obtain him—nothing is more agonizing than this.
Li Dong: "What are you thinking about? Or do you not like Xing Yu? I don't think so!"
Chu Beiling paused for half a second, recalling Li Dong's reminder in the ancient town, then smiled and didn't deny anything: "Is it that obvious?"
Li Dong told him, "When you like someone, even if you keep quiet, your love will show in your eyes; you can't hide it."
Chu Beiling remained noncommittal.
Li Dong tilted his head: "You can't accept that you're different? Actually, being gay is quite normal."
People who study art are all unique and different from others. When they first learn that something is challenging their self-perception, they will be shocked and unable to accept it for a while, but they will not be unable to accept that they are different from others forever.
Being different is their true, proud nature.
As for homosexuality...
Gazing at the distant white mist, Chu Beiling remained silent for a while before asking, "Su Beichen and Shen Zhi, aren't you worried that the same thing will happen again? We were almost discovered just now."
Li Dong: "I haven't thought about it. Once I'm in love, I'm in love. I can't think about it too much. I'll deal with it when I find out."
Chu Beiling suddenly didn't know what to say.
Li Dong also couldn't quite understand: "If you like someone, you like them. Why would you push them away or be afraid to hold their hand just because you're afraid of what others will think or if you'll be discovered?"
After a pause, she continued, "If you like someone, you should hold their hand. Everything else is secondary. It's not worth it if you don't have the courage to do it for other people or things."
Xing Yu and Chu Beiling are both so preoccupied with their own thoughts.
Li Dong was genuinely puzzled: "What are you all afraid of and worried about all day long?"
If he hadn't witnessed Su Beichen and Shen Zhi's affair, he might have hidden or run away the moment he realized he liked Xing Yu. But after thinking it through, he might have bravely grabbed Xing Yu's hand and confessed his feelings.
Because that's Xing Yu, and he deserves a serious decision.
But precisely because a serious decision is required, he cannot easily abandon his concerns.
The life and death of teenagers are in the hands of adults, and unforeseen events can happen very easily, especially when the outcome is not favored.
Chu Beiling was really afraid that there would be no future for her and Xing Yu, and even more afraid of losing him because of it.
Chu Beiling couldn't be as composed as Li Dong. After that moment of impulsiveness, he remained cautious once he calmed down.
"Because Xing Yu is too good," Chu Beiling said.
Li Dong was surprised, then said helplessly, "You two are quite interesting." She had heard Xing Yu say the same thing once at the training base.
Li Dong put his hand on Chu Beiling's shoulder: "Chu Fanfan, relax a bit. Don't take it so seriously. If you like someone, you like them. What's the big deal? Don't be afraid of the unknown. It's rare to meet someone you like. It would be a real pity and regret if you couldn't have them."
She said, "Even if it's destined to have no outcome, and we don't know how long this relationship will last, at least we've had some time together. Why worry so much?"
The joy of being seventeen or eighteen is like throwing a glass ball into the air, knowing it will shatter, just to catch that moment in your palm filled with starlight, dazzling and radiant.
If you like something, you should try your best to get it, even if the whole world disagrees or denies it, it won't change anything in the future.
All Li Dong knew was that at this moment, all she wanted was to be with Sheng Xia.
Li Shuying returned to China from Singapore after only two days of holiday, planning to stay for five or six days before going back. Last year, she was busy with a project on New Year's Eve and did not return to China.
Chu Beiling had thought that Li Shuying had come back to China specifically to spend New Year's Eve with him, but he didn't expect that she had only been back for five or six days because of a project.
Upon hearing this news, the young master was very unhappy: "Why can't we stay in China and go back after the Spring Festival?"
Li Shuying said, "I have my own career to take care of, and besides, how am I supposed to support you if I don't work!"
Chu Beiling: "Then take me to Singapore with you." His voice rang out at the same time as Li Shuying's phone.
I don't know if I heard him speak.
Li Shuying answered the phone and walked towards the door as she spoke: "To President Lin, we have a pre-IPO project for a new energy company that needs a $500 million bridging loan, with plans for a Hong Kong IPO later..."
The door was closed, shutting out Li Shuying's voice.
Chu Beiling stared at the door for a while, and as Li Shuying's voice faded into the distance in the hallway, he returned to his bedroom in disappointment and sat down in front of the easel.
After staring blankly at the blank canvas for a moment, Chu Beiling took out her phone and tapped on Xing Yu's pinned message.
Their conversations were still going back to before they left for training camp.
On Xing Yu's birthday, as they exited the subway station, there was a dance studio in front of the Gonglian CC Plaza that was probably advertising to expand its enrollment of new students. To attract newcomers, the studio arranged for its existing students to organize a dance performance.
Seeing this, Chu Beiling suddenly felt like teasing Xing Yu, so she sent him a message: "Brother Yu, can you wear a little skirt and dance for me? Looking forward to it.Jpg"
Xing Yu gave him a cold, indifferent look: "Goodbye, sir."
Chu Beiling: [Brother Yu, how could you be so heartless and hurt my young and helpless heart?]
"Go take a look." Xing Yu sent a picture, and when Chu Beiling opened it, he was surprised to find that Xing Yu had actually booked an appointment for him with a specialist in the Department of Cardiac Surgery at the Second Affiliated Hospital.
"..." Chu Beiling: [I'm going to call the police and report you for hit-and-run.]
Xing Yu didn't reply, so he bombarded Xing Yu with a barrage of emojis.
Xing Yu: [R]
Chu Beiling: [Refusal is ineffective.] Then sent: [Even if you don't reply, I will continue.]
Xing Yu: [Dancing happily.jpg]
Chu Beiling wasn't entirely satisfied, but she was content nonetheless: "That's fine, my beloved consort."
Xing Yu glanced at him, found a photo in her album of them performing in the stage play "Sleeping Beauty" at last year's arts festival, and sent it to him: [You flatter me, I cannot compare to your magnificent beauty.]
Chu Beiling's face flushed red instantly, and he reached out to snatch Xing Yu's phone: "You still have it? Delete it."
This photo not only shows him being forced to wear a women's tutu for the first time to play a princess, but it was also teased by his classmates as being their wedding photo with Xing Yu.
So Chu Beiling used every method, including coercion and bribery, to get everyone who had the photos to delete them, but unexpectedly Xing Yu managed to get them back.
After a brief struggle, Chu Beiling, who had been toyed with by Xing Yu, was defeated.
A true man knows when to yield and when to stand firm; if force doesn't work, he has to resort to a softer approach: "Please delete it, Brother Yu, please."
Xing Yu gestured with his chin toward the students dancing energetically in the distance: "If you dance in a skirt, I'll consider it."
Chu Beiling pouted: "Xing Yu, you're really too hard to bully. Even black sesame dumplings aren't as black as you."
Xing Yu couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, a faint smile playing on his lips, melting into the golden light of the setting sun.
— Pulled out of the brief memory, Chu Beiling had a distorted feeling, an emptiness.
After staring at the screen for a while, Chu Beiling typed slowly and deliberately in the input box: "Is the math winter camp fun?"
After typing it, he deleted it.
Another entry: [Ms. Li has returned to China, but she won't be staying for more than a few days before returning to Singapore.]
Delete it again.
Re-enter: 【We'll talk when you get back.】
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