Chapter Seventeen
After the high school entrance exam, Cheng Xiangbei was sent to a factory by his father to "train" himself.
The scores were estimated, and there was no problem getting him directly into the top high school. Father Cheng happily kicked his youngest son out of the class.
The factory was located in a relatively remote and impoverished county. Although transportation was convenient, the management was closed. Cheng's father wanted his youngest son to do some manual labor and experience life. So, once Cheng Xiangbei went in, he wouldn't be able to come out for at least a month and a half.
Cheng Xiangbei ran to find Lu Nan, wanting to take her with him. Although conditions would be tough, with him looking after her, Lu Nan wouldn't be tired. Lu Nan looked at Cheng Xiangbei, who was smiling at her, and gave an awkward smile. "You go by yourself, I still need to go back to the countryside to see Grandpa!"
"Oh? Is the old man feeling unwell again?" Cheng Xiangbei asked worriedly.
Lu Nan nodded. She said softly, "I won't go with you. Take care of yourself."
"Oh, I see..." Cheng Xiangbei scratched his head, looking dejected. "Alright then, I'll call you on time. If you have time, please ask Uncle Li to take you to see me, okay?"
Looking into his expectant eyes, like a big dog's, Lu Nan couldn't bring herself to refuse. "Yes, I remember."
"It'll be a long time before we see each other..." Cheng Xiangbei suddenly reached out and hugged Lu Nan, taking a deep breath. "Okay! I'm off! Be good and wait for me to come back!" After saying that, he felt that his words seemed a bit ambiguous, blushed, and ran away.
Lu Nan stood there, stunned, for a long time before she came to her senses.
Grandpa Lu is fine, he's just old and a bit weak.
Lu Nan has always lived in her hometown, spending her time either taking walks with her grandfather or helping her grandmother grow vegetables and feed chickens. She lives a comfortable life.
Cheng Xiangbei called him every three days. Life at the factory was exhausting. Nobody knew his background, and because he was tall and strong, everyone treated him like a laborer, making Cheng Xiangbei complain endlessly. But he had an indomitable spirit and didn't want to lose face, so he gritted his teeth and persevered.
The physical fatigue was bearable, but the absence of Lu Nan made him feel incredibly uncomfortable. His father's allowance was limited, and calling every day wasn't practical. So, three days' worth of longing was condensed into a single phone call, making Cheng Xiangbei feel like he could never say enough. This benefited Lu Nan, who only heard Cheng Xiangbei talking on the other end while she responded with mumbled "uh-huhs" and "yeahs." Until one time, Cheng Xiangbei jokingly asked, "Have you missed me?"
Lu Nan paused, hesitated for a long time, and then uttered a sentence as soft as a mosquito's buzz: "I want to."
Cheng Xiangbei immediately burst into laughter, exclaiming in an exaggerated voice, "Haha! I knew it!" In reality, his hands were shaking so badly he could barely hold the microphone.
Lu Nan's face flushed red, and she hung up the phone after chatting for a few more minutes.
After hanging up the phone, Lu Nan couldn't sleep all night, tossing and turning, thinking about how they were when they were very young, about Cheng Xiangbei's first fight with another child for him, about their first time holding hands on the way to school. So many firsts in her life were experienced with Cheng Xiangbei. In sixteen years, the two of them had never been apart for more than a month. So, was the decision she made this time right or wrong?
Cheng Xiangbei finally saw Lu Nan arrive a month later.
Uncle Li parked the car far from the factory gate, gave Lu Nan a note, and instructed him to go to the factory to find someone. Uncle Li was essentially Cheng's father's confidant; if he showed up, Cheng Xiangbei's identity would be immediately exposed.
Lu Nan clutched the note, walking forward nervously. This was the largest-looking factory in the vicinity; the gate was simple, but a security guard stood watch. Lu Nan walked over, carefully handed over the note, and forced a smile.
The security guard chuckled and asked, "Looking for someone? I'll make a call, wait a minute!"
Less than five minutes later, Cheng Xiangbei came running towards them from afar. He rushed to the gate in one breath, beads of sweat glistening on his forehead, panting heavily, and grinning widely: "Nannan!"
Seeing the undisguised joy in his eyes, Lu Nan also smiled happily. "Tiger!"
Cheng Xiangbei couldn't wait for the iron gate to open, so he squeezed through the crack, leaving the gatekeeper dumbfounded. He shouted, "Hey! Open the gate before you go over!" But the two, who hadn't seen each other for so long, had already run off hand in hand.
The security guard shook his head helplessly. These kids nowadays!
"Nannan, what delicious food did you bring me?" Uncle Li asked as he drove, the two children huddled together in the back seat.
Lu Nan took out the food basket that Aunt Li had brought for Cheng Xiangbei. "Here, it's all in. You have to eat it quickly, or it will spoil."
Cheng Xiangbei nodded and put the basket down. He stretched out his tanned arm, showing off his well-developed muscles, and glared at Lu Nan. "Look! Much stronger, right!" Cheng Xiangbei, who had run all the way from the workshop, was covered in sweat and smelled of sweat. Lu Nan, who was always very clean, didn't hold back at all and reached out to pinch Cheng Xiangbei's arm. "So what if you have muscles!"
"Ouch, that hurts..." Cheng Xiangbei laughed as he dodged, but Lu Nan immediately threw a punch. "Serves you right for putting on airs."
"Uh, I'm dead." He collapsed onto the car seat, pretending to be dead.
Lu Nan rolled her eyes, ignoring this childish guy. Cheng Xiangbei waited three seconds, then secretly opened one eye. Finding that Lu Nan wasn't falling for it, he could only sit up, feeling aggrieved. He said, "Nan Nan, you don't care about me at all."
"If I didn't care about you, I would have come all this way to see you!"
"Uh..." I'm out of words.
Uncle Li drove smoothly, watching Cheng Xiangbei's discomfiture in the rearview mirror with a chuckle. It seemed that Hu Zi had never gained the upper hand in front of Lu Nan.
During the meal, Cheng Xiangbei asked about the exam results. Lu Nan paused, her hand holding the food in her hand, then smiled and casually said that she had passed everything.
"They've all crossed the first line?" Cheng Xiangbei was afraid something might happen.
"Passed." Lu Nan nodded. Her chopsticks unconsciously picked up a green pepper.
"That's good. When will the notification arrive?"
"Next week, anyway, it'll be there by the time you get back." Lu Nan nervously poked at her rice with her chopsticks; she had lost her appetite.
"Okay!" Cheng Xiangbei felt relieved after hearing Lu Nan's words. "When I get back, I'll need to take care of things for the start of the semester. I'll take care of your luggage so you don't forget anything."
"You think you're so great! Humph!" Lu Nan pretended to be angry and lowered her head to eat her rice.
"Don't be angry!" he grinned foolishly, full of anticipation for the future when the two of them would go to school hand in hand. When he came to his senses, he saw Lu Nan picking at green peppers and putting them in her mouth. Cheng Xiangbei exclaimed urgently, "Nan Nan, why are you eating green peppers?!"
"Huh? Um... I forgot."
However, Cheng Xiangbei was unable to realize his beautiful wish of going to school hand in hand with Lu Nan.
When he returned from the factory, the acceptance letter had already arrived home. He excitedly went to find Lu Nan, but she wasn't there. Lu Nan's mother smiled and told him that Lu Nan had gone to buy stationery. Cheng Xiangbei also jokingly told Lu Nan's mother that from now on, he and Lu Nan would be hanging around under her nose.
Lu's mother's eyes widened, and she said: "Tiger, Nannan has been admitted to the provincial high school."
"What?" Cheng Xiangbei was stunned. After a long while, he managed to squeeze out, "What did you say?"
"Nannan got into the provincial high school," Lu's mother confirmed. "The admission notice has already arrived."
Cheng Xiangbei felt as if struck by lightning, his vision going black. He gritted his teeth and asked incredulously, "Nannan is going to the provincial high school?"
"Yes, I had to ask his dad to change his application!" Lu's mom laughed. "It's really scary to think about now. I was really afraid he wouldn't get in! This time it was a close call; he was only three points above the cutoff! Although No. 1 High School is a good school, it's a higher level than a provincial high school. If he had..."
Before Lu Ma could finish speaking, Cheng Xiangbei swayed and left through the sliding door.
"Huh? Tiger!" Looking at Cheng Xiangbei, who was walking unsteadily, Lu's mother scratched her head in confusion. What's wrong with this child?
Cheng Xiangbei didn't go far; he stayed squatting downstairs at Lu Nan's house.
When he first heard the news that Lu Nan was going to the provincial high school, he was utterly shocked. He couldn't understand why Lu Nan would change his mind at the last minute after they had agreed on something! And why had he kept it from him all along! Thinking back to how nonchalant Lu Nan was when he visited him, he hadn't mentioned anything about him taking the provincial high school entrance exam. He figured Lu Nan already knew he had passed then. Why? Why did he do this?!
Cheng Xiangbei grew angrier the more he thought about it. His eyes, glaring at the corner of the building, were practically sparking with rage. He was furious!
Finally, Lu Nan slowly walked over, carrying a plastic bag, head down, seemingly lost in thought. Cheng Xiangbei jumped to his feet, rushed over, and grabbed Lu Nan's shoulders. He roared, "Lu Nan! Why did you go to the provincial high school?!"
"Huh?" Just as dusk was falling, a tall figure suddenly loomed over Lu Nan, leaving her stunned. "Tiger? You're back?"
"Why did you take the provincial high school entrance exam! Why didn't you tell me?!" Cheng Xiangbei continued to yell.
"..." Lu Nan lowered her head and remained silent.
"Say it! Why!" He had forgotten how strong he was, grabbing Lu Nan and shaking her violently.
Lu Nan remained silent, while Cheng Xiangbei, enraged, punched a nearby tree trunk in frustration. "What did I do to offend you? Why are you treating me like this? Didn't we agree to go to the same high school together? Why did you hide it from me?!"
Lu Nan felt a pang of pain in her heart as she watched him throw his fists recklessly. He tried to hold back his tears and said indifferently, "I'm tired."
"What?" Cheng Xiangbei abruptly pulled back his fist, exclaiming in disbelief, "What did you say? You're tired?"
"Mmm." Lu Nan nodded, her nose tingling, and tears welled up in her eyes. "I don't want you to take care of me anymore."
"What do you mean?" Cheng Xiangbei asked, his mind focused.
"I'm so tired! I'm so tired of being taken care of by you!" Lu Nan suddenly looked up, all the resentment he had been holding in exploded. "Do you know that people are laughing at me behind my back, saying I'm incapable of doing anything? That I'm nothing without you! Do you know I'm a boy?" Lu Nan patted his chest, tears streaming down his face, crying and shouting, "I don't even understand what kind of person I am anymore! You arrange everything for me, I've forgotten what I want to do, what I can do?! Lu Nan doesn't even know what she wants to do anymore! Do you understand?"
Cheng Xiangbei's face was deathly pale. He stared at Lu Nan, who was sobbing uncontrollably, struggling to accept her cries. "You mean...it's all because of me?" The question was asked very softly, but it felt like a thousand needles were piercing Cheng Xiangbei's heart, the pain almost making him bend over. Was it all because of him that Lu Nan was so dissatisfied? Had his care and protection all along been restricting Lu Nan?
So, he was wrong?
Lu Nan cried so hard she could barely breathe. Cheng Xiangbei's eyes also reddened. This was the first time Lu Nan had cried like this in front of him, cried so hysterically. It turned out that what he thought was his sacrifice was only something Lu Nan was reluctantly accepting. He suddenly didn't know what to do. Even with Lu Nan's anger and resentment towards him, he still didn't want to let go.
"Nannan, are you really going to the provincial high school?" he asked in the gentlest tone, afraid of startling Lu Nan even a little bit.
Lu Nan didn't speak, but turned her face away and nodded.
In an instant, Cheng Xiangbei felt as if all the oxygen in his body had been sucked out. He swallowed hard, gazing intently at Lu Nan, whose face was streaked with tears. He reached out his hand, then abruptly stopped in mid-air. Lu Nan didn't want to be with him anymore. No matter how much his heart ached, no matter how reluctant he was to see Lu Nan shed tears, he couldn't hold her in his arms and comfort her any longer.
He opened his mouth, using all his strength to stop his voice from trembling.
"Then, as you wish." With that, he strode away.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
