Chapter 75 Klein (9) I don’t want to talk about you anymore…
Lin Xia woke up on an ordinary morning. There was no alarm clock or ringing phone. She woke up naturally. Maybe she had a dream last night, or maybe not. There were only some fragmented afterimages. It was not a nightmare, nor a sweet dream. She just felt that her heart was more peaceful than ever before.
I got up, got dressed, went out, put on my slippers, and the moment I stood up, my foot slipped and I almost fell.
After standing there in a daze for a while, she left the bedroom, followed the rustling sounds through the living room, and came to the bathroom.
He Chuan was seen squatting in front of the open locker under the sink, with his head stuck in. He was holding a cell phone with the light on, checking something. Jiujiu was sitting obediently on the side, wagging its tail intermittently.
"What are you doing?"
Hearing the sound, He Chuan and Jiujiu turned around at the same time. The movements of the man and the cat were synchronized and very similar, which made people feel a little funny.
"It seems like there's a water pipe leak, but I haven't found the source of the water yet."
He Chuan frowned:
"Has this ever happened in your home before?"
At this moment, there were water stains everywhere in the room, on the walls, the floor, the table, and the chairs. Even Jiujiu's originally fluffy fur became damp and drooped listlessly, making the whole cat look smaller.
Lin Xia was silent for a moment, then spoke slowly:
"It's not a leak, it's the return of the South Sky."
The return of the south wind is a unique weather phenomenon in the southern region. Whenever the temperature rises rapidly and the humidity rises sharply, backwash will occur. The warm and humid air currents condense on the surface of cold objects to form water droplets. Overnight, the whole world becomes wet.
Seeing that the man and the cat in front of him had confused expressions, and there was dust on the tip of He Chuan's nose from somewhere, but he was completely unaware, Lin Xia tried to hold back, but finally couldn't help laughing and burst into laughter from the bottom of her heart.
Seven years ago, their relationship ended without a trace. There was no misunderstanding, no resentment, no betrayal, and no forgetting. They still loved each other and still cared about each other, but they were separated in the mist of life without noticing.
And seven years later, their reunion and reconciliation did not require any hysteria or crying, but only needed such an ordinary morning, such a commonplace scene: he was worried about the water leakage in the house, she was wondering where she put the dehumidifier she bought last year, and the black cat walked across the wet ground with elegant steps and disgust.
That's enough.
The cold wind has passed and spring has finally arrived in Shenzhen.
.
With the arrival of the return of the south wind, the two-week quarantine life is coming to an end.
It's said that repeating something for 21 days can form a habit. He Chuan and Lin Xia, unprepared, were forced into each other's lives, and it seemed to take only a dozen days for them to adapt.
At the beginning, the two people's schedules were very out of sync. He Chuan made breakfast every day, and Lin Xia felt embarrassed to stay in bed, so she tried to go to bed early and get up early every day. He Chuan also noticed Lin Xia's difficulty, and quietly moved the time of three meals back a little. Gradually, their pace was finally able to be consistent. When they sat at the dining table for the first time and had breakfast together in the morning light outside the window, both of them couldn't help laughing.
The disharmony caused by the cramped space was also unconsciously accustomed to and accepted. He Chuan moved from the living room to the bedroom, no longer having to avoid it, and many awkward moments were no longer there. The bumps in the kitchen when turning around went from smiling at each other to becoming accustomed to them. Later, they summed up their experience and were able to predict each other's next moves in time. As soon as He Chuan turned off the heat and took the food out of the pot, Lin Xia handed him the plate. Lin Xia stepped on her to open the cabinet door, and He Chuan found the cup she wanted accurately. No words were needed, and they had a tacit understanding.
After dinner that day, the two of them stood side by side in front of the sink, feet touching, arms touching, washing dishes and cups together. He Chuan spoke without warning:
"Xia Xia, have I ever told you that I'm actually very lucky?"
"What are you thankful for?"
“I’m glad I was with you when this quarantine happened.”
Admittedly, this incident disrupted He Chuan's entire work plan. After the lockdown was lifted, there was a massive mess waiting for him to clean up. The work lost and the money lost during those fourteen days were enormous. Yet, in his heart, he was still feeling a sense of relief, grateful for this opportunity to intrude on her private life, to close the distance between them and her, to enter her long-closed heart.
If it weren't for this absurd and coincidental quarantine that forced them together, they would not have had this opportunity to transcend the seven-year barrier of time and space, shed all disguises, face the truest each other, and rely on each other in difficult situations.
Lin Xia said softly:
"Me too."
The sudden outbreak has turned everyone's lives upside down. Facing isolation, it's not impossible to be alone. She has lived alone for several years and even had surgery alone. But she will be lonely in the end, just like a puzzle with a missing piece, it will never be complete. Before this, she was just ignoring and enduring.
But now, it finally won’t happen anymore.
......
On the last day of quarantine, He Chuan's spinal disease suddenly flared up due to working at a desk for more than ten days, sitting at a desk and chair of inappropriate height, and spending long hours in front of the computer for meetings and reading materials.
His neck was painful and stiff, and he felt dizzy and nauseous, so he could no longer continue working. He had no choice but to lie down on the sofa and close his eyes to rest.
Lin Xia was worried about him: "I saw something online before, saying that applying ginger or scallions would be more effective."
"Are you marinating the meat?" He Chuan was a little amused. "It's okay, I'll be fine after a rest. This is an old problem. I'll go to the hospital to have a checkup after the lockdown is lifted tomorrow."
Lin Xia disagreed: "It's still very dangerous to go to the hospital now. It's better not to go if you can."
She paused and said with some emotion: "Time flies so fast. Fourteen days are almost over in the blink of an eye."
The quarantine is about to end, but the epidemic is still going on. Neither Irving nor MT have returned to work, shops are closed, and factories have stopped production. When they are released from quarantine and walk out of the apartment building, the test brought by the epidemic to their daily lives may really begin.
"What are your plans after the lockdown is lifted tomorrow?" Lin Xia asked.
He Chuan pondered, "It's difficult to go abroad now. All my foreign projects have to be suspended for a while. I should go meet with the parties involved first, and then ask the court for a specific extension period..."
"You're such a workaholic!"
Lin Xia sighed helplessly. Even in this situation, he was still only thinking about work.
He Chuan was stunned for a moment, and he also found it a little funny: "Sorry, I'm just... used to it."
For many years, his life was completely filled with work, without a single breath of space. Now that they were finally together again, perhaps he should adjust his work and life rhythm in the future, and should not push himself so hard anymore. He should set aside some time to be with her.
"What about you? What do you want to do after the lockdown is lifted?"
"My thoughts aren't as complicated as yours," Lin Xia said seriously, tugging at her overgrown bangs. "The first thing I have to do after the lockdown is lifted is get my hair cut."
She wanted to get a haircut years ago, but a lot of things kept piling up, and she kept putting it off until now. She couldn't take it anymore!
He Chuan couldn't help but smile. After so many years, her vain nature hadn't changed at all.
Despite He Chuan's objection, he was ultimately unable to stop Lin Xia from applying the "ginger hot compress method", "scallion hot compress method", and "salt hot compress method" that she had found on the Internet. He Chuan felt like a piece of meat on a chopping board, which had been deodorized and flavorful. After marinating for a while, it could be put directly into the oven.
Then Lin Xia felt that lying on the sofa was too soft, so she found a yoga mat and spread it on the ground, letting He Chuan lie flat on the ground with his neck resting on a Fanta bottle filled with water, so that the bulge of his spine matched the depression of the bottle.
"Are you feeling better?"
"Much better." He Chuan said sincerely.
After this ordeal, the pain was indeed relieved a lot.
"Is there something wrong with your spine?" he asked, otherwise you wouldn't be so skilled.
"A little, but nothing serious. My lumbar spine is not in good condition, and that's because I sit in the office. How about you?"
"No, but my stomach is not feeling well."
"No way, you have three meals a day quite regularly."
"It's not like I can take care of you every day. But you often eat takeout. Is your stomach okay?"
"There's a little problem..."
Seeing He Chuan's expected expression, Lin Xia felt very unconvinced and raised her right hand in front of him:
"Then I have tenosynovitis, do you have it?"
"......No."
"I knew you didn't!"
"Why do you sound so proud?"
"This is an occupational disease exclusive to us painters!"
Urban white-collar workers sit in cubicles in front of monitors all year round, working from nine a.m. to nine p.m., and overtime. Who doesn't have some occupational diseases? You have a herniated disc, I have enteritis and stomach ulcers, you have sciatica, I am addicted to caffeine. When you are young, you exchange your life for money, and when you are old, you exchange money for your life. We look at each other and smile, and understand each other. No one should despise anyone else.
So the two patients lay side by side on the yoga mat, relaxing their spines and lumbar vertebrae, staying away from mobile phones and computers, and discussing their condition casually.
After learning that Lin Xia often had stomachaches but had not yet gone to the hospital for a thorough checkup, He Chuan could not help but advise her:
"You still have to go see a doctor and prescribe the right medicine. Stomach problems can be minor or serious."
"But, gastroscopy is so scary..."
"This is indeed a bit painful." He Chuan smiled, "Don't be afraid, I'll go with you. It's time for me to go for a follow-up check."
"What's wrong with your stomach?"
"Chronic gastritis is a bit difficult to eradicate."
"I remember hearing someone say that the stomach is an emotional organ, and stomach problems are usually emotional issues," Lin Xia said slowly. "So, is your stomach problem due to excessive work pressure, or is it because... you once drank too much and had stomach bleeding, which caused the problem?"
He Chuan is not an alcoholic. He only drinks lightly at social banquets that he cannot refuse. There has only been one time in his life when he drank so much that he had gastric bleeding and had to be hospitalized. That was when he was studying in the UK and was bullied by someone for trying to make money.
He Chuan paused for a moment after hearing this:
"You know?"
Lin Xia responded softly: "Just a little bit."
She didn't say it was Ji Min who said it, but he must have guessed it.
"There is some connection, but not much. It should be the root of the disease that was contracted when I was younger, before I went to Wangchun."
"I haven't heard you talk about the past."
"What happened before...wasn't pleasant. You won't like it."
"Maybe I don't like it, but I still want to know." Lin Xia said seriously, "He Chuan, I don't want to hear about you from other people anymore."
The broken promise about the end of the world, the real trigger for their seven-year separation, this was the final knot in their hearts. If it wasn't untied at this moment, in this special time and space, she didn't know if they would have the courage to bring it up again in the future.
He Chuan was silent for a long time, and finally sighed softly and said bitterly:
"Okay, I'll tell you everything."
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