Chapter 12: Enlightenment
Hang Liumei came to her senses, and there were so many things that brought back memories that she often dreamed of Dunhuang inadvertently.
She used the tip of her chopsticks to scoop up the thin bean sprouts from the edge of her bowl and brought them to the bottom, along with the remaining pieces of cold noodles. She tilted the bottle so she could drink more easily from the icy peak at the bottom. Pu Zhihe had almost finished her meal, with only a small piece of pancake left in her hand, waiting for the stray dog begging for food from another table to come over.
"You call it, puppy, puppy, lololo—" Hang Liumei helped Pu Zhihe call it. "I raised pigs in Dunhuang. I call the piglets to eat like this, lololo. I also called Xiaomai that when he was a child."
We hit the road again. The sky was dome-like, the fields were inky black, and the streetlights cast a muddy golden glow. Hang Liumei rolled down the window, letting the mountain breeze ruffle her hair, which she had guarded all the way. The wind carried the scent of plants awakening, the Ursa Major shifting northward, and water vapor condensing into clouds.
Living a life of luxury in the city for too long had left her with a sense of stagnation and restlessness. Dozens of kilometers of mountain roads helped her relax, and the deep blue mountain silhouettes in the distance covered her like a blanket, giving her a sense of peace.
Pu Zhihe turned on the music, and the two of them sang "The Wind Continues to Blow" along with Leslie Cheung. They had to stop because they laughed so hard at each other's poor Cantonese.
Xiaomai skipped class and went home, only to find the house empty. For the past year, the lights had always been on because her grandmother found it lonely when she was alone, and she'd grown to appreciate the bright and lively atmosphere.
He called his grandmother, but the robotic female voice said the phone was turned off. He sent a message to Pu Zhihe, who replied with a location.
There was a knock on the door. Wearing dreadlocks and branded clothes, it was none other than his English tutor, Jonny.
Jonny was a friend of his who-knows-what-he-is-he'd-been-heard-of son, who'd returned from studying abroad. He was selling English lessons livestreams and even taking high-end one-on-one tutors abroad. Mai's father, a man of the world, was known for his generosity. He immediately bought his son a year's worth of lessons, all with the goal of preparing him for future study abroad.
Jonny half-slumped on the sofa as casually as if he was at home: "Grandma is not here today, so I'll be rude. I was sweating all the way here." After saying that, he took off his motorcycle jacket, revealing a basketball vest underneath, revealing his arms that were tanned in parts.
Xiaomai didn't like studying English. After two hours, when class was almost over, Jonny pulled him aside to chat about the NBA playoffs. Jonny supported the Lakers, excitedly explaining that the Lakers were currently battling the Warriors for a spot in the Western Conference Finals. They were up two games to one after three games, with a best-of-seven record.
"Davis is still awesome, but if I had to say, watching the live show isn't exciting enough. I went to see it live in the US back then, and it was absolutely amazing." Jonny gestured as he spoke. This was his skill; he could always turn any topic around to the past decadence.
Hang Liumei and Pu Zhihe pushed the door open. Neither of them expected to see a stranger, so they both stopped talking and the room suddenly became quiet.
Hang Liumei greeted Jonny: "Zhuo Ni, you are here for class. Have you eaten any fruit? Would you like some drinks?" Jonny replied that he had and thanked grandma, but his eyes passed by her and looked at Pu Zhihe behind her.
Back in the bedroom, Hang Liumei opened her notebook. Her first wish was to personally mentor another student. She was very pleased that Xiaomai had sent Pu Zhihe to her. For such a thoughtful girl, it would be better if she married later so she could start nurturing her.
In the living room, Jonny couldn't help but get closer to Pu Zhihe. She bent down to take off her boots, and when she looked up again, Jonny was standing in front of her.
He put his hands on his hips, and extended his muscular arms just within arm's length of Pu Zhihe, then extended his hand to her: "Hello, beautiful lady, my name is Jonny, and I'm Xiaomai's English tutor."
Pu Zhihe's shoes were difficult to remove, so she had to twist the soles to get them off, so she didn't want to shake hands. Jonny insisted, insisting she cooperate. She resented his half-forced enthusiasm and presumptuous gaze, so she deliberately shook his entire palm with her dirty hand. "Hello, my name is Pu Zhihe, and I'm Teacher Hang's assistant."
After saying that, she tried to go around him and into the house, but Jonny dodged like a ball and stood in front of her again. "I didn't expect Grandma Hang to come out of retirement. You must be very good. If you need an interpreter, you can come to me. I give pretty girls a 50% discount. You two are beautiful women, so I'm willing to help you for free."
Pu Zhihe gave him a fake smile and said, "Really? You know English, that's great."
Jonny didn't hear the sarcasm; instead, he thought she was flirting with him. He put one hand on the table and started talking in a sticky way. "No way, there are so many people who can speak English. This is nothing. I'm not that great..."
Xiaomai couldn't stand his foolishness anymore, so she handed him her jacket and urged him to leave. Pu Zhihe immediately turned and left. Jonny took the jacket and bumped Xiaomai with his shoulder, lowering his voice and asking, "Who is she? Is she really your grandmother's assistant?"
Jonny stared intently at Pu Zhihe as he spoke. She leaned sideways, her slender back revealing the shape of her shoulder blades beneath her dress. Xiaomai didn't want to pay him any attention and handed him his bag. "She's Grandma's colleague. So there's no class this weekend, right? See you later. We'll talk next time."
"Hey—wait, I haven't assigned your homework yet," Jonny said, holding onto the doorframe with one hand while pulling out his phone from his hip pocket. "Can you give me her WeChat?"
"WeChat?"
Jonny winked and said, "Yeah, I just promised her to contact me when she goes abroad, and I mean it."
"Oh, okay then." Xiaomai lowered her head and sent him her grandmother's WeChat business card.
"Thanks, buddy!" Jonny proudly opened the door and walked out, still turning his head to look inside the house. The person who was about to knock on the door swung his arm and hit him on the back of the head. He immediately got angry: "Who are you? Where are you knocking on the door? Who are you? Why haven't I seen you before? You found the wrong door and you're knocking blindly..."
Xiaomai pushed Jonny away and saw that the man who was stunned by the scolding was Zhu Fu.
Zhu Fu was even more confused when he saw Xiaomai: "Hey? Hey? Aren't you the one who was going to jump off the building?"
Jonny got excited when he heard this and immediately raised his voice and asked back, "You want to jump off the building?! What's wrong with you, bro?"
Oh, you go first, I'm fine, we'll talk later. Xiaomai pushed Jonny into the elevator with a dark face, and then pulled Zhu Fu into the door.
Zhu Fu was confused again when he saw Hang Liumei: "Aren't you his grandmother? What's your grandson trying to do now?"
"Zhu Fu? What are you doing here? Didn't I tell you that you could just run an errand and deliver something?" Pu Zhihe changed her clothes and came out to see three faces looking at each other in bewilderment in the living room.
Zhu Fu trotted over and pulled Pu Zhihe aside to report the situation: "Didn't you say you were at that teacher Hang's house? Why are they here too? You're not asking artists to help you educate your students, are you? How can I be at ease if you say you're living in a stranger's house? I have to come over to take a look and get to know the place. And if this teacher is useful to you in the future, I'm going to help you use his connections..."
Hang Liumei was shocked by the muttering of this square-faced young man. He just pulled Pu Zhihe aside and conspired loudly. She hoped he would shut up quickly, because if she heard him talk nonsense like this any longer, she might really burst out laughing.
Pu Zhihe interrupted Zhu Fu's embarrassing behavior at the right time: "This is Teacher Hang Liumei, and this is Teacher Hang's grandson."
There were daggers in her eyes, and Zhu Fu immediately understood that she was angry with him.
"Ah?" Zhu Fu gasped. Oh my god, the world is full of wonders, and every family has its own problems. Poor parents, everything made sense! It turned out that Zhihe's good deed saved the teenager who was about to commit suicide, and thus got to know his artist grandmother. The latter invited Pu Zhihe to participate in the work, in fact, to repay the favor. Zhihe was doing good deeds and it was rewarded.
He suddenly understood something, and with a smile on his face, he walked forward respectfully and shook Hang Liumei's hands with both hands: "Teacher Hang, it's a pleasure to meet you. I am Pu Zhihe's fiancé, and I am very grateful for giving her this opportunity to learn and gain experience. I often hear her mention you. Although I have only met you once, I know that you are a highly respected artist, and I also admire scholars like you. I am sorry for causing you trouble by coming here without permission today. Please feel free to ask me if you have any questions in the future. Don't be polite!"
Hang Liumei was thoroughly amused by his fluent speech. She burst out laughing, shook Zhu Fu's hand, and replied in the same business-like manner as him: "It's been a long time since I've seen such an outstanding young talent as you. I welcome you to visit often in the future. Your girlfriend is indeed both talented and beautiful. I wonder what you are doing now?"
Zhu Fu was very pleased with Hang Liumei's reaction: "Thank you very much. I am just a small clerk in the power system. I can't compare with a national treasure like you."
Just as he was about to pull Hang Liumei into a long chat, Pu Zhihe stopped him: "Teacher Hang and I have been out collecting folk songs all day. Let's talk later. It's late now, and the teacher should rest."
"Yes, yes, yes, I was rude!" Zhu Fu slapped his head and criticized himself in frustration. "Then you must study hard with Teacher Hang in the future. Teacher Hang! You have to leave me alone for a day. I invite you to sit with our little brother. You must agree to this!"
"How about having dinner at home today?" Hang Liumei suddenly had an idea. She could talk more with this young man and feel why Pu Zhihe didn't want to marry him. At least she had a big question now - how could these two people from completely different worlds be together?
"Then this..." Zhu Fu stopped and looked at Pu Zhihe, waiting for her decision.
"Forget it." Pu Zhihe picked up his words and threw them aside.
"Yes, I won't eat, Mr. Hang. It's inconvenient to disturb you today. We must meet another day!" Seeing that she had sent him out the door, he immediately knocked again. Pu Zhihe opened the door with a palm. Zhu Fu took out a capacitive stylus from the inside pocket of his suit and handed it to her: "I almost forgot what I wanted to send you today. You said this thing is worth thousands of yuan. Do you really dare to ask the errand boy to send it casually? If it is broken, you don't know how to claim compensation. You must be tired today. I just forgot to care about you. You should rest early. I will miss you..."
After he finished speaking, he wanted to give Pu Zhihe a goodbye kiss. Pu Zhihe was a little warmed by what he said, but she was irritated by the smell of cigarettes in his mouth as he leaned in, and immediately turned her face away: "Well, I see - you're smoking secretly again?
"I went to a dinner party with my boss tonight. Can I not smoke the cigarettes he gave me?"
"It's up to you. Go back early and be careful."
Turning back, Xiaomai asked them, "Are we still going to eat? We have some meat sauce sent by others at home. We can have some Qishan Saozi noodles."
Hang Liumei lay on the sofa a little disappointed and said, let's just make something watery and let everyone take a break at night.
Xiaomai obediently went into the kitchen, and Pu Zhihe also went in and picked up a potato to help: "I'm sorry, he's a little..." She couldn't find the right adjective.
Xiaomai immediately said, "It's okay, my friend has some too."
Someone is ringing the doorbell again.
Hang Liumei trotted to open the door and called out her former daughter-in-law's name in surprise: "Mai Sui! You're here! You're so great! We were just about to have dinner. Come out, Xiao Mai! Mom is here—who is this?"
Xiaomai and Pu Zhihe walked out of the kitchen and saw Mai Sui walking in, pulling a strange man to introduce him to Hang Liumei: "Mom, this is my new boyfriend."
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