Chapter 49: Going against the grain (10) Upside down and down, like waves...
"Is it so difficult to complete the mission?" Before going to bed at night, Zhang Deng slept next to Wei Yuanye, turned his head and spoke to him in a low voice.
Wei Yuanye closed his eyes slightly and whispered, "It shouldn't be that difficult."
Zhang Deng said, "So I encountered Hell difficulty right from the start?"
Wei Yuanye smiled and said, "Why are you so unlucky?"
"Usually, a mission only takes two weeks," Wei Yuanye said. "I rarely take more than two weeks."
Zhang Deng said, "But you've been with me for a long time."
Wei Yuanye didn't answer the question at first. He just stroked his forehead with his cool fingers. Zhang Deng asked, "You really stayed for a long time then."
Wei Yuanye frowned slightly, and he said "hmm" vaguely in response.
Zhang Deng asked, "Is my mission also difficult?"
"It's very complicated." Wei Yuanye said.
Zhang Deng: "There's no danger at all, and it's complicated. Is it a problem with your professional ability? You weren't even in a hurry to help me solve the problem."
Wei Yuanye opened his eyes, glanced at him, then avoided his gaze with a light. Wei Yuanye said, "You really have been anxious to get me out."
Zhang Deng stopped talking.
Wei Yuanye wasn't really angry. He just stated the fact. Then he turned back, closed his eyes, and said calmly, "What do you want to hear?"
"I fell in love with you at that time and didn't want to leave," Wei Yuanye asked, "Is that it?"
Zhang Deng was a little unhappy. He really wanted to hear this, but not in this tone.
Wei Yuanye said: "Indeed."
Zhang Deng: “…”
"That's it," Wei Yuanye said, "Just as you thought."
Zhang Deng was stunned for a moment, then asked, "Did you... like me then?"
Zhang Deng automatically changed to a more polite way of saying it.
Wei Yuanye made a "hmm" sound through his nose.
Zhang Deng asked, "Why?"
"No reason." Wei Yuanye said simply.
Zhang Deng: "But I wasn't being polite at all at that time."
The time when Zhang Deng met Wei Yuanye should have been the most embarrassing and awkward moment in his life. How could anyone fall in love with him during that time?
Wei Yuanye didn't want to explain, and he had no way to explain. He said, "I don't know."
Zhang Deng believed it and said, "Forget it, I understand."
That's how love is. It's normal to not be able to explain what you like.
But Zhang Deng could list a thousand reasons why he liked Wei Yuanye, but he thought Wei Yuanye might not be interested, so he didn't say anything.
Being in love is quite bitter, Zhang Deng thought, but it’s normal.
The night passed like this, and the next day Zhang Deng was the first one to wake up.
He sat up, and Wei Yuanye woke up as well. He opened his eyes, glanced at him, and whispered, "It's okay."
Zhang Deng was a little hungry. They had experienced too much yesterday and no one had eaten. He walked out of the cave and found that he still couldn't see the sky clearly. It seemed that it was going to rain. Living in such an environment was a bit depressing.
Food is probably the most serious problem they face now. It’s not that there is no food, but that many things in the mountains cannot be eaten casually.
Zhang Deng was worried when Dong Yu came out from behind him, stretching himself lazily. Standing next to him, Dong Yu asked, "Why are you awake so early?"
Zhang Deng said truthfully, "I'm hungry."
Dong Yu smiled and said, "Wait, I'll find you something to eat."
"Are you going alone?" Zhang Deng asked behind him as he watched him leave.
Dong Yu waved his hand, signaling him not to worry, and disappeared into the jungle in the blink of an eye.
Zhang Deng was actually a little worried. He stood there for a while and then returned to the cave. He saw that Lin Yuzhou had woken up at some point and was wiping a silver needle as long as his forearm that was shining with a cold light in the morning light.
Zhang Deng saw his weapon for the first time. Lin Yuzhou looked up at him and smiled, "What's wrong?"
"What is this?" Zhang Deng sat next to him.
The silver needle had a very small handle, and judging from its texture and workmanship, it must be of great value. Seeing that he was interested, Lin Yuzhou handed it to him.
Zhang Deng said, "It's so beautiful."
If it is a handicraft, Zhang Deng might buy it home to collect.
He returned it to Lin Yuzhou, who said, "I haven't used it."
"Maybe I've used it before," Lin Yuzhou said, "It might be my magic weapon, but I don't think it's very useful. It's not as sharp as a sword, and the wound won't be very big. It can't kill with one blow."
Zhang Deng said, "Don't you know how to use it?"
"No," Lin Yuzhou put it into his boots, his face calm and gentle. He asked Zhang Deng, "Do you think I'm a bit of a drag?"
Zhang Deng asked in surprise, "Why would you say that?"
"I've come this far thanks to you guys not despising me," Lin Yuzhou said. "I've caused you a lot of trouble."
Shi Hong's voice was vague and dull, with the impatience of someone who had just woken up. He said, "What nonsense."
Lin Yuzhou smiled and said, "Isn't it?"
"Forget it," Lin Yuzhou smiled with the warmth of an older brother, "I've remembered your friendship in my heart, so I won't say any more."
Zhang Deng said, "Don't talk about this among friends."
Shi Hong sat up impatiently and said, "I'm starving."
"Dong Yu went to find something to eat," Zhang Deng said, "Is he okay?"
Shi Hong: "He's very smart. If he wants to go, it must be fine."
Zhang Deng also felt that Dong Yu was actually a very cautious person. He would only take action when he was completely sure.
Shi Hongdao: "Did you understand what he said about that book?"
"I understand," Zhang Deng said, "It's just a cheat. You have experts to guide you, and he also has experts to guide him."
Shi Hong seemed to have not slept enough. He sat up and scratched his head like an angry bear. He thought for a moment and said, "Is this guy okay?"
"I don't know," Zhang Deng said, "but what does it matter?"
Shi Hong was stunned for a moment, as if he was surprised by Zhang Deng's words, but then he smiled and said, "That's right."
Zhang Deng really doesn't care why everyone comes here, and he doesn't care how sincere everyone is in their feelings, because Zhang Deng knows in his heart that everyone gathers together only because they have common interests, so before getting these interests, they will be united.
Why bother to worry about sincerity?
Zhang Deng thought, isn’t sincerity the most fragile thing?
As long as everyone is bound together by the same goal, they are stable.
As long as Zhang Deng was stable like this, he could eat and wear warm clothes, and that was enough. Anyway, he never pursued external happiness, he just wanted to get his inner peace.
Niu Zhuang was snoring so loudly in his sleep that he turned over because of the noise. After a while, he started snoring again.
About a quarter of an hour later, Dong Yu came back with a pile of fruits and vegetables, two fish and a pile of dry firewood in his arms.
Dong Yu's clothes were soaked by the fish. He said, "My skills are getting rusty."
"I was in seclusion in the West Mountain before, and I almost starved to death several times. I just grabbed some food from the mountain to eat. Another time, I was poisoned and couldn't get up for three days. I almost died on the mountain," Dong Yu said. "I have eaten all of these, and there is no problem at all."
Dong Yu skillfully started a fire, putting some wood chips, grass clippings and the like on the firewood. It was a bit cloudy today and the morning dew was heavy, so he couldn't light the fire for a long time. He rubbed his fingers and flames rose from his fingertips.
Zhang Deng said, "Wow, you have this ability."
"I won't hide it anymore," Dong Yu said, "I've already revealed everything."
The fire started to rise, Zhang Deng helped him fan it, Dong Yu put the fish on the hook, threw other fruits and vegetables into the fire, and handed Zhang Deng a red fruit.
The lantern looked very much like an apple. He had never even looked at this thing in the supermarket before, but today he was so greedy that he wiped it and put it in his mouth.
"So sweet," it tasted like apple. Zhang Deng shared it with others. Lin Yuzhou didn't hesitate and took a bite from his hand. Zhang Deng felt like he was alive again. He said, "I'm starving."
Dong Yu laughed at him: "It doesn't matter whether we've met or not at this point."
Zhang Deng didn't feel embarrassed: "I'll eat anything you give me now."
He went to call Niu Zhuang and Wei Yuanye, and found that Wei Yuanye had woken up, holding the communicator in his hand. He didn't know what he was thinking. When he saw Zhang Deng coming, he sat up.
Although he and Wei Yuanye are very close, Zhang Deng still feels that Wei Yuanye is a little strange at times.
He didn't know what Wei Yuanye was thinking, or how he viewed him. When Wei Yuanye was silent, Zhang Deng would feel guilty.
At this moment, Wei Yuanye asked him: "What's wrong?"
"Would you like something to eat?" Zhang Deng said in a very gentle tone.
Wei Yuanye stood up, and Lin Yuzhou asked, "How come you're so handsome even though you just woke up?"
"You're handsome, too," Wei Yuanye said casually. He took the grilled fish and spun it over the fire. He took a bite of the fruit Zhang Deng handed over and said, "It's so sweet."
Niu Zhuang made a lot of noise, and his stomach rumbled loudly. After he ate a few mouthfuls of vegetables, Shi Hong asked, "What's wrong with you? Aren't you a cow? Isn't this mountain full of food for you to eat?"
Niu Zhuang said: "You are a human being, you can also eat raw fish."
"Okay, okay," Shi Hong said, "you should also pursue quality of life."
Zhang Deng was still quite interested. He asked, "Hasn't you eaten grass in a long time?"
"I'm a half-demon," Niu Zhuang said to Zhang Deng, "I've never eaten grass."
Zhang Deng asked, "Have you been like this since birth?"
"Well," Niu Zhuang said, "I've never been a cow."
This news was indeed quite surprising. Dong Yu explained the strangeness of it: "But you are so wild, as if you have just cultivated a human form."
"My dad said they could all be killed," Niu Zhuang said. "My wife said the same thing. They told me not to suffer any injustice. Aren't your parents the same?"
"What kind of family atmosphere is this?" Shi Hong said, "My father only told me not to eat living things."
Zhang Deng couldn't stand it anymore: "Is your family atmosphere good?"
"What about you?" Shi Hong asked.
"My father..." Zhang Deng thought for a moment and said, "He never taught me anything."
Several people talked about their families. Zhang Deng briefly explained his situation. Lin Yuzhou commented while picking out fish bones: "Your parents are quite inhumane."
"It's okay," Zhang Deng said, "They just don't love me that much."
Lin Yuzhou said: "Why give birth if you don't love her?"
Zhang Deng didn't know that his original family was a mystery that he would never be able to solve in his life. He could persuade himself that parents didn't need to love their children too much, and as long as they brought them up, they had done their best. But Zhang Deng didn't understand either. Wasn't life a tyranny for a child like him?
He didn't ask to be born into this world and endure so much misfortune. Even though he would have moments of happiness and touching moments along his life's journey, no one asked him if he wanted to experience all of this. Life was a one-sided gift, regardless of whether he wanted it or not.
Zhang Deng was in great pain and kept brooding over this matter. He could have avoided going through all this.
Lin Yuzhou asked, "You gave them the car back? If it were me, I would burn their house down and run away."
Zhang Deng said, "That's illegal. The laws of our world are very strict. And I don't want revenge."
"You're always like this," Shi Hong said to Zhang Deng, "Listen to me, brother. I think you think too much."
"Life isn't that complicated," Shi Hong looked at him and said seriously, "In fact, all you need to do is live comfortably. There are always a lot of messy things in your mind."
Zhang Deng was a little confused, and Wei Yuanye said, "Don't worry about him."
Wei Yuanye seemed to have always hated the idea of others telling him how to set up the lanterns. He said, "He knows what to do himself."
Shi Hong also said: "He obviously doesn't know."
"Life is too tiring," Shi Hong said. "It's so simple to do whatever you like. You always want Zhang Deng to make his own decisions and solve his own problems, but Zhang Deng can't do that."
Wei Yuanye said: "You don't understand him."
Shi Hong said, "You understand him, but you are just a bystander."
Zhang Deng finally uttered the classic line: "Stop fighting for me."
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