Stealing a chicken but losing the rice (3)
"Shuixi! What are you doing?" Hui Zifeng shouted, worried that Shuixi would grab Song Shiwen and not let him go. After all, saving people was the most important thing.
Shuixi said nothing, merely glanced at him casually before taking Cangyue from his arms. Clearly, he had no regard for the injured, or else his hands wouldn't be held stiffly, like clothes hangers. Cangyue lay completely on Shuixi's arms, not even touching his body.
"Leave it to me. I'll drive here."
This reason is really irrefutable!
"So what?" Song Shiwen shouted angrily, rushing forward to grab her. Shuixi retreated violently, and Cangyue was thrown against Shuixi's body, causing her chest to hurt even more. She couldn't help but cry out. It sounded indeed more painful, and Song Shiwen didn't dare to act rashly.
"Be careful, be gentle..." Song Shiwen said, "Is it okay for me to go with you?"
Shuixi didn't answer. He hoisted Cangyue onto his shoulders and strode out of the alley. Song Shiwen was about to chase after them when his friend stopped him. Then he remembered he couldn't just ignore them. Hui Zifeng, like a victorious rooster, intimidated Song Shiwen with his eyes as he passed him.
"Is your friend sick?" Song Shiwen asked, referring to Shuixi's unusual behavior, which had stunned everyone. Song Shiwen's suspicions were starting to seem more and more real: Could it be that Shuixi had already been eyeing Cangyue? Hui Zifeng, and now Shuixi, both trying to steal her from him?
When Hui Zifeng heard this, he stopped and stared at Song Shiwen for three to five seconds, with a complicated expression on his face. After a long while, he uttered, "Your friend is sick."
Cang Yue's stomach ached from Shui Xi's shoulder, and after swaying back and forth for a while, she couldn't help but vomit. A foul odor filled the air, and the stink pushed Cang Yue back to vomiting again, probably until she emptied her stomach. Finally, they reached a deserted street, and Shui Xi tossed her to the side of the road, like scraps of meat.
The night wind grew stronger, whistling and soaking the chill of the opposite region. Zang Yue crouched on the ground, feeling her body losing control even more. She tried to look at Shui Xi, trying to remember his appearance; after all, this might be the last person she would see.
Shuixi was tall, and the streetlights weren't bright enough. The distant light and shadow fell right on his jaw, obscuring his face. Cang Yue could only see the glaring jawline and feel the cold gaze from those eyes. This feeling was so familiar. She was so distressed that she had no intention of remembering where she had seen it before. She tried desperately to calm herself down, but this time, for some reason, the blood in her body seemed to freeze. Her fingers couldn't move, and her thoughts became slow.
"Go home safely." Shuixi said this before leaving.
Where could she go home? She had no home here. Was she supposed to go back to Chaolai Temple? But where was this place? She didn't recognize it at all. Besides, she couldn't move at all now, and she might faint. What should she do? She struggled quietly within herself, but found she had no strength at all. Was this condition due to the injury she had just received?
I'm fine! It doesn't hurt at all, and there's no skin broken. Please don't let me go. She screamed in her heart, but it was no use.
Isn't it murder to abandon such a person in a strange place? Shuixi, who are you?
Just as she thought she was about to pass out again, she clenched her fist and smashed it with all her might against the nearby streetlight. With a loud, crisp thud, a deep dent appeared on the iron pillar. She shuddered, seeming to regain consciousness, but her strength was draining even further. A dark figure fell before her. She looked up, but still couldn't make out its face. At that moment, she couldn't even imagine that this person was Shuixi.
The shadow slowly descended, set down something white, and turned to leave. Zang Yue saw that it was a pair of white sneakers, the kind many people wore on the street. Why give her shoes? When a man gives a woman shoes, it means he intends to marry her.
The long shadow stopped, remained silent for a moment, and turned to look at her. She still couldn't see the other person's face clearly. Perhaps now, she really had to say goodbye to this world. Song Shiwen, Wen Jie, Mr. Zhao, and the old man who gave her the buns... Goodbye...
Shuixi walked back to Zangyue's side and squatted down, watching her eyes lose their luster and a look of regret on her face. Zangyue looked at him, thinking she was a prey, at the mercy of others. But Shuixi smiled, picked up Zangyue's feet, removed her leather shoes with worn heels, and replaced them with new ones.
He left again without saying a word, this time without any regrets, and his steps were obviously much faster than last time.
She remembered! In an instant, as if she had regained her strength, she stood up suddenly, but she still couldn't take a step. Soon she lost her support and fell back to the ground.
"Ji Qing!"
Shuixi turned around, and the whole person was still in the shadows. He took a look, waved his hand and continued walking!
"Benefit you!"
Shuixi had indeed returned. Facing the light, he squatted before her. This time, she finally saw Shuixi's face clearly. Although it reminded her of Black Panther, when she called out "Hui Jiqing," he had answered, hadn't he?
"Are you afraid of me?" Shuixi saw through Zang Yue's thoughts and found this fact ridiculous.
"Don't be afraid." Zang Yue uttered the two words stiffly. Her tongue was also stiff.
Shuixi lowered his head and smiled again.
That face still looked terrifying. Was it him?
"I'm sorry, I'm Shuixi."
"Who is it?" She couldn't remember. It was unlikely that she didn't remember someone, but they still remembered her. Shuixi was an exception, so she was filled with anxiety.
"Shuixi, kind. Kind, Shuixi." Shuixi smiled. Cang Yue hadn't known he loved to smile so much. The smile on his face was truly perverted. Sorry, he was probably Huijiqing, but you can't say that. Even if Huijiqing became like this, she would accept him wholeheartedly.
"Go home and think about it slowly. Don't wander around anymore. It's very dangerous."
It was unclear whether this was a sincere warning or a pure threat. However, Cang Yue understood one thing: the person in front of him was Shui Xi, not Hui Ji Qing.
"And..." Shuixi deliberately whetted Cangyue's appetite, looking contented at her expectant eyes. His brow furrowed in worry, and Cangyue became nervous, immediately patting her chest. "Giving embroidered shoes is a proposal. These sneakers are just because I feel sorry for you. Don't get the wrong idea."
Shuixi patted Cangyue's stupid head, hummed a little tune, patted his butt and walked away. Hui Zifeng had been standing not far away waiting for him, and suddenly walked out, startling Shuixi.
"Hey, what are you doing here?"
"Didn't you say to send him to the hospital?"
"She has a secret and refuses to go. Don't force her. Let's go home."
Hui Zifeng refused to leave, as if he wanted to get to the bottom of things. "What's your relationship with her? Are you so close that you help her put on her shoes? Is she your ex-girlfriend? How do you explain it? Is it your ex-girlfriend who is plotting against me to get revenge on you?"
Shuixi wanted to annoy him, raised his chin, and asked, "What the hell is it to you?"
What? Why had Shuixi become like this? Shuixi had always been unwavering in his words, respectful, tolerant, loving, even fawning. Could this attitude today really be about a girl? I've known him for so long, and this is the first time! Forget it, a furious Hui Zifeng thought to himself, sulking in rage. Forgive him, and for once, do what a friend should do.
"Where are you going?" Shui Xi saw Hui Zifeng walking in the opposite direction and thought he was really angry. Shui Xi asked angrily. At this moment, he was in no mood to care about Hui Zifeng's feelings.
"Home? Where else can I go?" Hui Zifeng feigned indifference, skirting Shuixi's outstretched arms and sprinting towards the girl. She seemed unwell, as if she had lost too much blood. She leaned against the streetlight, her head drooping to the side, a look of slight sorrow on her face. Could Shuixi just leave her like this, even in this state?
Hui Zifeng had originally pretended to pass by and glanced at her, wanting to see Shuixi's reaction. Now he realized that Shuixi had already left, having sent him a message telling him where her car was parked and where her keys were hidden. Seeing the girl in such a state, he stopped and took out his phone, intending to call an ambulance or the police.
"What do you want to do?"
Suddenly, a third person's voice came out, and Hui Zifeng couldn't help but feel a chill all over his body. He turned his head and saw a handsome boy wearing the uniform of a nearby high school. It seemed that he regarded him as a bad guy.
"This is my sister, it's none of your business."
"Oh. Okay." Hui Zifeng quickly put his phone away, glanced at the girl sitting on the ground, and asked, "Do you need my help?"
"No need!" The boy walked in front of the girl, blocking Hui Zifeng's gaze, his eyes firm and gloomy.
Hui Zifeng smiled, waved, and turned back, never looking back. He didn't have to help them, but he had lived in this world for so long that he'd been influenced by what he saw and heard, and he was just imitating them. The other party's refusal was actually the best thing for him.
Tan Songqi watched Hui Zifeng disappear at the end of the road, then turned around, helped Lu Cangyue up, and led her into the dark alley. The road was too dark, and Cangyue sometimes stepped on a stone and fell to the ground. After a while, Songqi finally found her, helped her up, and continued walking.
"Can you see the road?" She couldn't see anything and had to rely on the people around her to lead the way. Somehow, after falling a few times, she felt much better. Her legs were much more flexible, and she could speak complete sentences, although it was a little labored.
"Let's go to my house first. It's close and we'll be there soon." Tan Songqi's voice was calm and confident, completely unlike the way he had been when Cang Yue had seen him before. She thought that perhaps her transformation had given him a chance to become a brave man.
"Great! I just don't have anywhere to go! Thank you, Songqi, that's really great." Once she started talking, she never stopped. She was afraid of the dark, but right now, the darkness could save her life.
As the two of them twisted and turned in the dark alley, Cang Yue thought back to the past, the frustration she'd been holding back on her heart that she had to let out. Back then, she hadn't felt any frustration at all, but after so long, she was no longer the same.
At this moment, sporadic raindrops gradually fell from the sky, and her memory was once again drawn back to a time she cherished. Finally, she couldn't help but confide in the kind-hearted boy beside her, "I didn't have any worries before. My parents and brother all doted on me. Even my younger brother loved me very much. He would share the delicious food he worked hard to get with me and give me his cherished gifts. My father always said I was lawless and wanted to find someone to discipline me, so I beat his... what's the term? It's probably... never mind. Anyway, I beat the crap out of everyone he found to be my husband. No one dared to mess with me. I thought I was really afraid of nothing. Later... it was also a rainy day, and I went to settle a score..."
"So where are your family now?" the boy interrupted.
The two men had reached a large gate, overgrown with weeds and rusty iron. The boy tore off the chain, leaving indelible rust on his hands. He entered the gate and put the chain back on. Walls flanked the road on either side, and beyond them stretched two untended woods.
"They are all gone." Zang Yue followed the boy and said this calmly.
"It doesn't matter." The boy suddenly turned around and smiled. "Some parents are actually obstacles. It's better when they're gone, right?"
Cang Yue was surprised and wondered if his parents were not good either. However, as far as she knew, saying such a thing would be condemned in this society.
"We'll be at my house soon. You go ahead and I'll go get some food."
Turning the corner, Tan Songqi walked into a run-down little roadside shop. Zang Yue noticed the roof looked as if it were about to collapse. The lighting was a dim, gloomy yellow, and the brick floor looked grimy from the dampness. Everything was covered in age-old grime, even the hunched owner. Peering inside, the owner's instincts were sharp; his eyes followed, and Zang Yue hurried away.
Tan Songqi's family was indeed very poor. The house was a typical two-bedroom, one-living-room apartment in a run-down neighborhood. A foul odor hit him as he entered. Tan Songqi opened the window, and by the streetlight outside, Cang Yue could see a large, dark mass in the living room. It turned out to be a bed, and on it lay a chubby old man. The stench was emanating from this bed.
Zang Yue bowed to the old man who was not sure whether he was asleep or awake. Tan Songqi turned on the TV on the wall and asked her to go into the house.
The old man mumbled something, but Cang Yue didn't catch it. Tan Songqi poured water while watching TV. The midnight news was playing, saying that a new batch of cat corpses had been found, and the methods used were brutal.
"I've been discovered again."
"Yeah, it's too cruel." The ground was too dirty, so Zang Yue tiptoed towards Tan Songqi and said confidently, "You're also paying attention to this matter? Don't worry, I will catch the murderer."
She hadn't thought about doing this, but at this moment she just wanted to bring some good thoughts to the boy.
Tan Songqi wasn't paying attention. He placed the water next to the old woman's bed, not caring if she could reach it, and then dragged Cang Yue to the other room. It was a world apart from the living room. Although the room wasn't large, everything was spotless and bright. The bed was the only place to sit. With Tan Songqi's permission, she went over and touched it. It was incredibly soft, so she sat down and looked around.
"You can rest here and talk to me when you feel better. I'll go make you some noodles."
"Eh? Aren't you also running a high fever?"
Tan Songqi said nothing and walked out of the room to look after himself. The bookshelves along the wall opposite Cang Yue were filled with books, and out of curiosity she went over to take a look. She had gone to school for a few days a long time ago, and didn't know many characters, but she had gradually forgotten most of them. Furthermore, the handwriting she learned was different from her current handwriting.
Why not become his disciple and learn from him, then use the money to pay him? Cang Yue pondered this, pulling out a random book. It contained numerous illustrations, including cross-sections of plants. Glancing at the cover, he recognized the words "biology" written on it. He flipped through another book, another introduction to the human skeleton. It seemed his interests were unusual. He flipped through the pages, feeling bored and dizzy, and soon, oblivious to everything else, he collapsed onto his bed and fell asleep.
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