Chapter 125: Listening
Chapter 125: Listening
It was already dark.
The curtains have been drawn the whole time, so now we can't see if there's any light outside.
Cheng Bing, shirtless, leaned against the headboard. Fang Yuenian slept on the pillow, the blanket loosely covering Cheng Bing's waist and shoulders. The news was playing on TV. Cheng Bing had one arm around him, and with the other hand, he was on the phone, preparing to order takeout. This man didn't want to go out and was reluctant to get up.
Fang Yuenian hadn't really fallen asleep; she was just too relaxed and somewhat indulging in the freedom of being able to be close to Cheng Bing. When she heard Cheng Bing hang up the phone, she snuggled into his arm and asked, "What time is it?"
"7:30," Cheng Bing leaned down and kissed his forehead, "Do you want to go to the movies tomorrow?"
Fang Yuenian twisted her neck to look at him, her tone involuntarily a little coquettish: "Well, although I'd love to go to the movies with you, how about we don't go tomorrow? I want to stay at the hotel. Can we still stay here tomorrow night?"
Cheng Bing noticed the red mark on his shoulder and rubbed it with her fingertip. "We can come out again in the future."
“The National Day holiday only comes once a year,” Fang Yuenian reminded him, “and you’re all too busy. It’s too much of a waste of our time that we’ve come all this way.”
Cheng Bing smiled and said, "Other people also date on weekends."
That's true, but Fang Yuenian didn't want to be the kind of person who needed to spend a lot of time maintaining the relationship, so she said very seriously, "Brother Cheng, you need to have your own time, make your new friends. I don't need you to be with me all the time, as long as..."
He knew when to stop.
Cheng Bing deliberately asked, "What do you only need?"
Fang Yuenian pinched the skin on his waist with his index and middle fingers together, and Cheng Bing immediately turned to the side and wrapped his body around him.
“I understand,” Cheng Bing’s eyes shone with warmth, and he lowered his head to kiss his lips. “Then let’s stay another night.”
As night fell, the two turned the TV volume down, playing the video almost silently.
Fang Yuenian had so much to say to Cheng Bing, it seemed like all those daily phone calls had been for nothing. He always had an endless urge to confide in Cheng Bing. Cheng Bing listened patiently with a smile until the topic of what had just happened came up, at which point his expression changed slightly.
Fang Yuenian pressed the tip of her tongue against her palate, observing his reaction, and whispered, "Don't say we didn't do anything, even if we really did... it wouldn't matter."
Hearing him start using "even if" again, Cheng Bing immediately got angry and pinched the flesh on his cheeks. Fang Yuenian struggled and said vaguely, "I said later, later is fine, I didn't say now."
Cheng Bing let go, but couldn't get past him no matter what, so she leaned close to his ear and gritted her teeth, saying, "You just wait."
To be honest, after all that commotion, Fang Yuenian wasn't so fearless anymore. He leaned against Cheng Bing ingratiatingly, "I was wrong, I was wrong."
Cheng Bing gave a low hum.
Fang Yuenian continued her ingratiating manner, recounting the big and small events happening around her, and the two discussed when to arrange for their respective friends to meet and strengthen their bonds. They then mentioned Li Peixiang, who, after getting his driver's license, drove across cities for the first time straight to Z University to see Meng Xiaoyang, and had been gloating like crazy these past few days. Actually, Fang Yuenian had a tiny bit of a urge to find out how they spent their holiday, whether they… but she held back, deciding to wait for Meng Xiaoyang to tell her himself.
Although Fang Yuenian was extremely reluctant, on the third day, they finally had to prepare to check out.
Fang Yuenian was being lazy and wouldn't get up no matter what she did. Eventually, he finally got up, and Cheng Bing went downstairs to buy breakfast, telling him to hurry up and wash up. When she came back, she found him shirtless in the bathroom, dawdling over rinsing his mouth, and insisting that the toothpaste smelled bad.
Cheng Bing glanced at him and frowned. She went to find some clothes, took them inside, and said, "Put them on."
Fang Yuenian looked at him in the mirror and retorted, "I'm not cold."
Cheng Bing dragged him out and forced him to put on his shirt, warning him, "If you catch a cold after coming out like this, I'll never come out with you again."
These words were so intimidating that Fang Yuenian quickly put on his clothes and even put on an extra jacket. Then, watching Cheng Bing pack his bag, he snuggled up to him and muttered, "Wasn't it supposed to be checkout before 11? It's not even 9 yet."
"Go eat breakfast," Cheng Bing said.
Fang Yuenian rested her head on his shoulder, "Can I have lunch at your school later?"
Cheng Bing paused, then turned to look at him: "You have an early class tomorrow, so go back to your dorm and rest early."
"I've been resting these past few days," Fang Yuenian blurted out, then added a little guiltily, "Well... anyway, I'm not tired."
Cheng Bing tidied his slightly messy hair. "Let's go in a few days. It's too much of a hassle to go back and forth."
Fang Yuenian let go of him listlessly and went to the table to eat her breakfast.
Seeing him like this, Cheng Bing felt a little soft-hearted, so she went over, put her arm around his shoulder, kissed him twice on the cheek, and coaxed him, "I'll take you to eat your favorite salt and pepper ribs in a few days. You can also come to our dorm. My roommates all know about you now."
Fang Yuenian turned her head and said regretfully, "I should have said that my partner and I were in a long-distance relationship, so my roommates wouldn't always be thinking about having a social event with your dorm."
Cheng Bing told her roommate that her boyfriend wasn't studying in Beijing, but he had another good friend there. Boys her age all loved making friends, and they had been talking about getting together for a while.
Cheng Bing put her arm around his shoulder and said, "You can tell them that you have another friend at our school, and this time it's a boy."
"Now they'll definitely wonder why I didn't mention it before." Fang Yuenian was very frustrated, blaming herself for not being more quick-witted back then. "Oh, by the way, is your WeChat account set up yet?"
When WeChat first entered the student community, Fang Yuenian and Cheng Bing were still busy preparing for exams. They only started using it gradually during their university years. Now, their friends and classmates are all frantically adding friends and finding all sorts of excuses to post on their Moments. A couple of days ago, Cheng Bing officially registered an account, and the two added each other as friends, but they still prefer sending text messages.
Cheng Bing said, "I just sent you a voice message. Did you not turn on data?"
Whether it was the previous or the current campus card plan, the data allowance was pitifully small. Fang Yuenian wasn't an internet addict and rarely turned on his data when he was outside the campus network. Upon hearing this, he said, "Why didn't you say so earlier? Let me hear it."
It was just a very ordinary question. When I was buying breakfast earlier, I asked if you wanted to eat fried buns. Fang Yuenian listened to it repeatedly with a silly grin. Cheng Bing couldn't help but laugh and said, "Come and eat quickly."
"Oh, okay, I'm here." He sat down with his phone in his hand. Cheng Bing was standing behind him, and he pulled her hand to sit down. "I noticed that your voice sounds a little different in the voice messages, but it's still very nice."
Cheng Bing opened the breakfast takeout box for him, "Get me a reply later, I want to hear it."
"Okay, I can give it to you right now..."
"You eat first," Cheng Bing said, taking his phone away. "We need to check out."
Fang Yuenian was unhappy. "Oh."
Cheng Bing glanced at his expression, smiled, and asked, "Have you added the sisters on WeChat?"
"I added you. You're the slowest one. I've already scrolled through all of Xiaoxiao's WeChat Moments."
Fang Yuenian, both proud and downcast, yet also full of wild fantasies, leaned closer to him: "Brother Cheng."
"What are you doing?"
“We,” Fang Yuenian pursed her lips and said in a very low voice, “can we take a shower before we leave?”
Cheng Bing's gaze darkened.
Fang Yuenian looked at him cautiously and expectantly.
Cheng Bing stared at him and slowly exhaled, "Fang Yuenian."
"ah?"
“You, do you know,” Cheng Bing said through gritted teeth, “…we just showered before going to bed last night.”
Fang Yuenian's ears turned slightly red. "Then I'll go back today. I won't see you for the next ten days, which isn't very...frequent, is it?"
Cheng Bing couldn't stand it anymore, so she stuffed a small fried bun into his mouth and said, "Eat yours."
·
This trip left Fang Yuenian with unforgettable memories, and she kept looking forward to the next one.
Time became plentiful and precious, and he and Cheng Bing would date on weekends when they had nothing to do. At first, they spent most of their time together enjoying the sights of the capital and taking photos at various attractions in Beijing. However, their time together was always short.
Life goes on, and society is developing rapidly. Smartphones have quickly taken over every aspect of their lives. Online shopping, food delivery, mobile games—university life is filled with new things. Soon, Fang Yue Nian got his first laptop, which his uncle bought for him. He mainly used it to complete various course assignments and to video chat with Cheng Bing—secretly hiding on the top bunk with his headphones plugged in.
On the surface, her roommates remained calm, but behind her back, they exchanged knowing glances, waiting for this innocent southern girl to reveal the most obvious truth about her relationship.
When winter came, Fang Yuenian finally visited Cheng Bing's dormitory as a friend and successfully got to know his roommate.
Their first semester at university passed just like that. After all the final exams were over, the two embarked on their journey home.
Because the winter break was long and there was no rush, the two chose hard sleeper trains, a journey of more than 30 hours. However, with each other by their side, Fang Yuenian had a very happy time.
Back in the city, Li Peixiang picked up the two of them in his understated yet luxurious car, with Meng Xiaoyang in tow.
Li Peixiang had expected the two to look haggard after their long journey, but Fang Yuenian was radiant, not at all like the person who had been kept awake by the kid in the opposite bunk the night before. Cheng Bing was even more handsome than he could bear to look at, which was quite unexpected. After the hugging and cuddling reunion, Li Peixiang put his arm around Fang Yuenian's shoulder and said exaggeratedly, "Damn, Brother Nian, your Brother Cheng is so eye-catching. If I were you, I would put a label on him and make him wear a mask or something."
Cheng Bing was putting her suitcase into the trunk when she heard this and looked up. Meng Xiaoyang patted Li Peixiang's hand, and Li Peixiang quickly withdrew his hand, saying, "Okay, okay."
Fang Yue Nian raised an eyebrow slightly and said with a forced smile, "Wow, your family is very strict."
Meng Xiaoyang smiled and said, "Come on, get in the car."
Fang Yuenian: "Alright, Brother Cheng! Get in the car!" Author's Note:
Thank you for reading. This book
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