Episode 24
"Who should this be given to?"
"Just give it to me, that's fine."
"Bye-Bye!"
When Benjamin didn't hear the word "bye-bye," he was filled with resentment. He knew very well that Benjamin was just a child, and children were unlikely to complete tasks so decisively. However, he was arrogant, far too arrogant, so arrogant that he thought he could control any student.
"Benjamin, another letter from you."
"A letter? Where did the letter come from?"
"From the same school."
"Strange? Who could it be...?"
Just as Benjamin was about to open the letter, a phone call came in, and the person on the other end said bluntly:
"How's your injury? Does it still hurt, you brat!"
"You brat? How dare you talk to me like that, Sashin!"
"Oh, they were just joking. You're as unlovable as ever."
"A hundred times cuter than you is fine."
"Pah!"
"So what? You called me just to ask if my wound is better or if it hurts?"
"Old Liu praised you, saying that this report was done quite well. He put your report on the school's bulletin board as a template so that other students in the school can learn from your reports."
"Oh, and then? Do you have anything to say? Yes, even a small suggestion is fine."
"That's quite a lot!"
"You really are as unlovable as ever!"
That night's phone call was their most open and longest conversation in a long time. Benjamin was on summer break for the first semester of his senior year, and Sasin was on summer break for the first semester of his junior year; their summer homework was different. "What homework did you guys have for your holidays?"
"We only have one assignment here."
"Wait a minute, just one? Really?"
"But it's quite difficult, because we're going to meet someone who's elusive and hard to find. And you might have a vague recollection of the person we're going to meet, because I also vaguely remember that name."
"Give me a hint."
"The last two major questions on the exam paper."
"The last two big questions on the exam? Oh, you mean Luo Zhan?"
Benjamin said this because the last two major questions in that journalism exam were set by Li Zan, who was the director of the news editorial department. Luo Zhan also had some connections with him, so some of the thinking behind the questions definitely received guidance from Luo Zhan.
"Um."
"Then can you find him?"
"I can't find it, do you have a solution?"
Yes, but...
"However? However what?"
"However, you'll need to provide some reports, otherwise you won't be able to find them even after this summer vacation."
"Benjamin!"
This time, Benjamin finally tripped up Sassin. Then, a second later, after saying something about Luo Zhan to Sassin, Benjamin abruptly hung up the phone.
"This is......"
After seeing the contents of the letter, Benjamin realized it was actually an invitation to university. Macau wanted to invite him to their university for further studies, but he didn't want to go. After confirming the dates were for next year, Benjamin put the letter away.
"Sasin, when you graduate with good grades, I will give you a spot at a prestigious university."
"......"
"You don't like it?"
"No, I like it very much."
"Then why don't you just say it directly?"
"Too lazy to explain."
"......"
After hanging up the phone that day, Sasin suddenly became unhappy. What use was the school's invitation letter if it was a guaranteed admission? He wasn't surnamed Ben, but Sasin. If such a method really existed, wouldn't his actions be considered impersonation to gain admission to university? No! He absolutely refused! After learning about Benjamin's situation from Sasin, Old Liu understood the true meaning of Benjamin's story and simply said to Sasin:
"You wanted Benjamin to be your junior, right? It's simple, just go to that prestigious university."
"But that's not fair to Benjamin. Who do you take me for?"
Who are you?
"I'm his homeroom teacher, what do you think?"
"......"
Sasin had expected to hear a completely new identity from Lao Liu, but instead, he heard this! Anyone else might have reacted violently. Benjamin's invitation remained, now covered in dust. However, at the Qi family's place, Sasin unexpectedly mentioned the drama surrounding Benjamin's discharge from the hospital, having learned from the nurses about who had picked him up and who had taken him away.
"Benjamin? He took him away?"
“I showed them the photo and they were all certain that it was the person in the photo who took Benjamin away, but the fact that Benjamin was taken away left me completely bewildered.”
"Why?"
"The reason is simple: the two of them have something to discuss privately, and we can't know it yet."
—The day Benjamin was discharged from the hospital—
"Benjamin, I've come to see you!"
"What are you doing here?"
"I wanted to watch until I was done and was about to be discharged, but I unexpectedly saw your figure in the glass door of the ward, so I came in."
Benjamin stared at him because what he was saying and what he had on him didn't match up; he was indeed empty-handed. But Benjamin didn't care, because he was about to be discharged from the hospital, and making such a big fuss made him feel a little embarrassed.
"Perfect timing, I need to talk to you about something."
"What's up?"
"You should complete the discharge procedures first."
"good."
—The night Benjamin was discharged from the hospital—
Why did you suddenly contact me?
"I have two things to tell you."
"?"
"The first thing is about the fact that you will definitely go to a prestigious university, and the second thing is about Sassin."
“If it’s about Sassin, then I’d be willing to listen.”
Upon hearing that even his academic future had been abandoned, Benjamin wondered if Sasin's relationship with Lao Liu would make him jealous. Benjamin's guess was correct, as Lao Liu was indeed jealous of Benjamin, and he had gone on and on about random things, which made Benjamin somewhat unhappy.
"What's wrong?"
“Sasin and Lao Liu are getting closer and closer, and they’re talking more and more openly, which makes me very unhappy.”
What's bothering you?
"......"
"Don't you know Lao Liu? His explicit talk with Sasin is just a joke. I'm even more outrageous with Lao Liu. Does that make you feel a little better? But sometimes we pay more attention to Sasin because we are all descendants of that time."
"Us? Only I am not one of them."
"You and Sasin are actually the same. If you're both from the same place, why don't you want others to know? You clearly know what kind of person Lao Liu is, and you still exposed his identity in front of so many people. Why can't you do the same when it comes to yourself?"
"I......"
"It's very simple, because the war in the Eastern Kingdom made you feel inferior."
"......"
“You’ve already resigned, so what’s there to be afraid of? Be yourself, not the person others want you to be. You always lack self-confidence.”
"......"
"If I'm being too blunt, then I can only apologize, because that's always been my personality, you know."
Perhaps it was Benjamin who directly touched on a part of him that he didn't want to remember, which led him to say something unpleasant the next second: he never accepts this kind of questioning or attack.
"Why?"
"Why what?"
“Look.”
"What... what is this?"
"goodbye."
That evening—
Who is it?
"Old Liu."
"?"
The moment the door opened, Lao Liu brought Sassin in. Although he carried Sassin in a princess carry, Benjamin didn't mind the smell of alcohol on Sassin. He knew Sassin couldn't drink that much, and Benjamin also had a few things to discuss with Lao Liu.
"How many bottles did you drink?"
"Half a bottle."
"I'll go get the towel and the milk."
"I took him to bed."
The two worked together seamlessly and had a clear division of labor. They immediately got to their respective tasks. After finishing up, Benjamin had also prepared tea at the apartment bar. Old Liu had to drink the wine for Sassin because he hadn't finished his.
Are you also a half-baked expert?
"Yeah, I drank the half bottle of wine that Sasin hadn't finished."
He still can't drink that much.
"If it really doesn't work, it's best not to make things difficult for him."
“You treat Sasin better than him.”
"head teacher?"
"Shh!"
As the door closed, Benjamin poured tea for Lao Liu. Since Sassin was asleep, they could talk things out more easily. Sassin and the others were "belatedly aware" that Benjamin had been picked up by the homeroom teacher that morning.
He asked me to go drinking today.
"What?"
"Don't worry, I didn't drink alcohol because I told him that I should follow the doctor's advice and not drink alcohol when I was discharged from the hospital."
"I heard from Sassin that you received an invitation from that prestigious university. Congratulations!"
"I don't want to go."
"Why?"
"Such a great opportunity would create a huge gap between me and Sasin, and he also likes and wants to go to this prestigious university. Most importantly, the invitation is valid for two years, and since there is no priority order for the places at that prestigious university, the decision is still in Benjamin's hands. If Benjamin had to choose, he would naturally give the opportunity to Sasin, and being a mercenary would be just as appealing to him."
"However, making him a reporter would be giving him too much credit."
"Why?"
"His knowledge is too superficial; he would just be throwing his life away if he went directly there."
"The problem with academic subjects is just one aspect. Who hasn't gone through this? I've been through it too. What you dislike most is the job of a media reporter because media workers often send you to Dongguo for interviews. If it were me, I would find it both boring and dangerous."
"......"
"In that case, I have one more question to ask you."
"What's the problem?"
"What exactly is this love-hate protective instinct you have towards Sasin? Is it because you like him that you subconsciously said such harsh things to him?"
"No, it has nothing to do with this."
"Then I have nothing more to ask. Anyway, I don't have such a strong feeling about dating."
"You're the one who truly likes Sassin, aren't you?"
“I never said anything like that; that’s just your own guess.”
Benjamin vehemently denied the allegations that he had a crush on Sassin, and he shared their conversation with the shareholders, which he then relayed to Lao Liu.
"I see, there's this connection."
"Yes, it's a huge misunderstanding."
"He just doesn't want to admit it, that's all."
"Actually, he..."
"Wow, you two can really chat."
"You're awake?"
"Um, what are you guys talking about?"
"I'm here to talk about Lao Liu's love life."
"You little rascal, you're about to betray me, aren't you?"
"......"
"I didn't do it on purpose."
"Anything even more exciting?"
No~
Because he slept so soundly that night, Benjamin was late for school the next day. The first thing he did upon entering the school was to go to the administration office to be disciplined. He habitually gave his reasons, saying that it was best to treat everyone equally when it came to expulsion, and that they were considering expelling Benjamin.
"Expelled? Really?"
“Look.”
Regardless of the outcome, Benjamin had no hope for those students or those incompetent school leaders, so he told himself that he had to have a legitimate reason to explain why he was late.
"What's wrong?"
"I got a lecture from those useless school leaders, but like before, I still have most of my immunity."
"......"
You'll get used to it.
Can I say that I don't want to get used to it?
"......"
—First Semester of Senior Year (Graduation)—
"I'm not going. This place is too dangerous."
"Found it?"
"If we can't find it again, going to the East will basically mean we won't be able to come back."
"That's really interesting."
"?"
"Didn't you pick up several guns this time?"
"PPKS".
"Bark bullets, but if you put one bullet in the base, you have ninety-nine bullets. That's definitely a good gun that you can keep on hand."
"Looks like Lao Liu knows a lot about this gun."
"......"
"Are you dating their homeroom teacher?"
"Arguing."
"......"
Only the two of them truly know what happened between them. Old Liu had never cared about his temper before, but this time he was different; he unusually lost his temper with his boyfriend. The reason was that the homeroom teacher clearly had a nurse in Dongguo, but he didn't stay away from the others because of that. Rather, it was because the teacher kept talking about how gentlemanly the acquaintance was when he saw him, and how that acquaintance was bound by circumstances in Dongguo. So, whenever the teacher knew that person was from Dongguo or had business there, the teacher would mention it.
"You're still the same as before. Why are you still hiding things from me? What exactly happened to you in the Eastern Kingdom? And why do you react so strongly whenever the Eastern Kingdom is mentioned?"
"Yes."
After hearing this response, Lao Liu realized there were some things they really didn't want him to know. Their way of getting along was just too exhausting. Arguments were so normal for adults; they were used to it. If it got serious, they might just playfully fight, but...
"Aren't you happy about this?"
"......"
"TK isn't happy either..."
The reason was that they encountered something annoying at work that day. Benjamin made a comment about Sassin that upset Lao Liu's girlfriend. That was all. He actually sided with Sassin, but his attitude towards Sassin was somewhat different from that of the other teachers.
"I'm a little worried."
"What?"
"Stealing a man."
"ha?"
"......"
"Can't you do it?"
"What are you talking about? Besides, Benjamin has long thought that you've been very good to your students. However, Sasin may not need our protection. Ever since people said you're like him, he's started to change himself because other people's impressions of him are too stereotypical. Even though you're the same kind of person, you don't want to change."
"......"
"Don't run away from yourself."
"It's not your place to point fingers at me."
"You've changed."
"I'm just cautious, that's all."
"Your behavior will harm others."
"I'll say it one last time: don't point fingers at me."
Goodbye, we have nothing more to talk about.
Old Liu was genuinely angry this time. He still didn't appreciate the concern others showed him, that was all. The only one between them who was willing to talk openly was someone who didn't want to say anything at all...
Who knows?
Benjamin wasn't surprised when Lao Liu described his features. Later, Benjamin asked Lao Liu for three days off. At the time, Benjamin was going to Dongguo for an internship, but this time the reason for his leave was different. He came here for only one purpose—to find someone.
Looking for someone?
This is what he looks like.
Benjamin came to inquire about someone, but what was his purpose? Unfortunately, few people there recognized the person in the photo Benjamin was holding. However, the military doctor from the Eastern Kingdom had seen the person in the photo before. But she was currently in surgery and unable to see Benjamin or answer his questions. Therefore, when he wasn't particularly busy, Benjamin waited patiently and finally met the military doctor who represented the person in the photo.
"May I ask who you are?"
"Hello, I'd like to ask if you've seen the person in the photo I have here before?"
"I know this person. He used to be from that place. Two people died there because of the mercenary attack. It's said that those two people were the parents of the person in the photo you have, that's all. But he disappeared from here after that day. However, he didn't disappear for long, because he suddenly reappeared here a week later."
"What was this person's condition at the time?"
"Not good."
"It can't be such a coincidence..."
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