Difficult
It was already late when Shuixi returned from Hui Zifeng's house. Five kilometers from Shanyou Fusu, he began walking home. He wanted to memorize the surrounding scenery, to see what changes had taken place recently. Which trees had been cut down, which fields had been buried to become parking lots, where a high-rise building had been built. He hated to see these changes, but he knew he couldn't stop them. He could only watch, and watch, as everything he had known and cherished slowly changed. He wondered what was left of him.
The feeling of his feet on the ground makes him feel at ease.
This street was gradually losing its human presence. Was that a good thing? Shuixi consoled himself. From afar, he saw the two lights still on in front of Shan Youfusu's door. Had he forgotten to turn them off when he left? As he drew closer, the halo of light fell squarely on the heads of the two stone lions at the entrance. The car, which should have been covered in bird droppings, was now as clean as new, though the pungent smell couldn't be quickly dispelled. Shuixi's gaze swept over the crack, and as he walked quickly over, he found the door slightly ajar.
Could someone have broken in? Shuixi couldn't help but sneer. This prey that had come to her doorstep couldn't be let go. She suddenly pushed the door open, deliberately creating a noise. Before she could sense the intruder's presence, she heard Ming Yan's startled voice, and then locked onto her position in the hall.
"You scared me!" Ming Yan was wandering around the hall bored, hiding behind a pillar. How could someone who was thinking about something not be startled by such a loud noise? When she saw that it was Shui Xi who broke in, his expression when he entered was like a superstar making a dazzling appearance, ready to receive the audience's cheers. What a cocky thing. "Where have you been?"
Shuixi felt aggrieved, lowered his head, turned around to close the door, and turned off the light at the door. Then he answered Mingyan's question respectfully and ingratiatingly, "I'm a bit bored, so I'm going out for a walk."
Ming Yan's Iron Horse Flower Viewing Sword flew open with a "click," covering most of her upper body. He then took a high seat and interrogated her. "Want to go out for a walk? You don't look like someone who can walk for three hours. Tell me, where did you go?"
Shuixi was stunned, unable to believe it, and hesitated to speak.
Ming Yan was kindhearted after all. He put away his fan, lowered his posture, went to his bag to get something, and asked Shui Xi to sit down. Shui Xi saw her bring over a small brown bottle of medicine, but she hadn't figured out what she was going to do. Ming Yan handed the medicine over and said, "Here you go!"
Shui Xi first smelled the pungent smell on her body and could not help but lean back, covering his mouth and nose, with a look of slight disgust but not daring to speak openly, a cunning glint in his eyes, and a mean smile, "Boss, what's that smell on you?"
"What else could it smell like?" Ming Yan, feeling vindictive, deliberately leaned closer to him. "It smells like bird droppings. Take off your coat, and I'll put some medicine on you."
"Apply medicine? Oh..." Apply medicine. So she noticed it. Shuixi continued to refuse with a look of disgust, "No, no, boss, I can do it myself, you better stay away from me, haha..."
The more he did this, the more Ming Yan refused to let him go. He grabbed the arm that was blocking him, but Shuixi started screaming "Ahhh" unexpectedly.
"What's wrong? Are you getting your comeuppance?" Ming Yan sneered, his hand already dipped in medicine using a cotton swab. "Hurry up, let me see if you're going to be crippled."
Shuixi obediently lifted up his sleeves, revealing severe abrasions on both arms.
"You're still running around even though you're in this state. Shuixi, what's wrong with you lately? Why are you either sick or injured? If that's the case..."
"Just fired me?"
She looked at Ming Yan with a pair of pitiful puppy-like eyes. This was what she thought, and after hearing what he said, her heart softened.
"Boss, don't worry. I'm healthy and will work hard." Shuixi watched Mingyan carefully apply the medicine to him, and he couldn't help but look at her face. That face had been flashing in his peripheral vision like a small flame for a long time. He didn't dare to look at it, and he was afraid that he would regret it later. Finally, he blurted out, "Boss, who is that gentleman today?"
"Can't you see it from this? And the legs too. Show them to me." Ming Yan stared at his legs, seemingly focusing on Shui Xi rather than the conversation.
Shuixi, too preoccupied with the weight of the man in Mingyan's heart, obediently rolled up her pants, revealing her severe bruise. The moment Mingyan bent down, Shuixi's movements were quicker than her brain, grabbing Mingyan's wrist and forcibly dragging her to her feet, splashing the potion in his face.
"What are you doing?" Shuixi's tone was a little harsh, and the blame was obvious.
"Ah... sorry." Ming Yan hadn't reacted yet. She only saw the brown potion flowing down Shuixi's pale face, staining his smooth skin the color of a weathered rock. It was really funny. She endured it with great difficulty, and then realized that this shouldn't be the case. She immediately changed her face and fought back, shaking off Shuixi's hand and scolding, "What are you doing? You hurt me!"
Shuixi's eyes gradually became obedient. She turned her head and wiped her face like a young wife. She reluctantly told the truth, "You... Boss, it's our job to kowtow to others. Don't do this. ...I'll do it myself."
"Hey!" Ming Yan slowly understood Shui Xi's reaction, finding it both ridiculous and pathetic. Shui Xi didn't want to look up at her, so Ming Yan insisted on looking him in the eye. So, he reached out and lifted Shui Xi's chin.
But the light, emanating from the red lanterns, carried a sense of ambiguity. The two of them were slow to react, a flickering object quietly landing in the distance.
"Let me tell you! Kneeling doesn't mean you lose your dignity as a human being. The two are completely unrelated. As long as your heart always stands upright, then you will stand. Even if you kneel, it's still you who kneels, understand? Nothing is more important than loving yourself, understand?"
Shuixi looked frightened, his eyes shone with innocence. Ming Yan pressed him repeatedly, and he nodded obediently.
"Remember this?" Ming Yan stepped onto the low couch where Shuixi was sitting, his presence overwhelming. "From now on, you'll have your sister's protection, so you don't have to be afraid of anyone. By the way, Hui Zifeng dares to boss you around, right? I'm going to teach him a lesson!!"
Shuixi couldn't help but smile bitterly. She cooperated to stop Mingyan, but she didn't realize that she had grabbed her belt. Mingyan froze, looked at the belt, and then looked up at him.
The atmosphere was subtly frozen for a second, and no one could tell what had happened. The two pairs of eyes scanned each other's, but it was a pity that no one in this world could read minds.
"What are you doing?" Ming Yan said in a good-tempered manner, acting like a superior.
"The smell is a bit strong." Shui Xi turned his face to the side and deliberately fanned the air in front of his nose.
"Oh my god." Ming Yan pulled out her precious iron horse from her waist and pretended to hit Shui Xi. "How dare you look down on me! I've been so good to you! Stop applying the medicine and get up right now to clean that car. There can't be any smell at all."
There was more disgust in Shuixi's eyes. He limped and obediently picked up the cleaning tools placed in front of him. He said confidently that he was threatened by Tiema Guanhua, and then said it again louder after walking away.
"Who is this guy? He's so tasteless that you'd wash his car? He's so rich that he's reluctant to spend it?"
"Shut up! Shuixi!" Ming Yan, standing by the door as the supervisor, flicked on two lights with a click. She fanned herself like a fluttering butterfly, a charming presence all her own. Of course, she was thinking of that man. "I've loved him since I was a kid. He's so handsome. I never thought my dad understood me so well. Haha, he's trying to bring us together!"
Shuixi stopped talking and walked with a limp, but the only person present was lost in memories of beauty and couldn't see him.
It was just dawn. A sleepless person called another who was soundly asleep, and the other person's disgust was not concealed at all.
"When did Teacher Hui become so dedicated? Did you take the wrong medicine? I didn't offend you."
"Excuse me, I have something important to ask for your help."
"Ah? Oh..."
Hui Zifeng could hear the person on the other end of the line pulling back the covers and sitting up to clear their heads. Their next words became serious and formal. He knew that Song Shiwen, despite appearing to be a jerk, was actually a good man with a strong sense of justice. However, for Hui Zifeng, there was still no one he wanted to be friends with.
"Go ahead and talk, I'm listening," said Song Shiwen.
"Do you remember the four lines of poetry you saw on the only painting without a name that day?"
"What?" Upon hearing this, Song Shiwen's true colors were exposed. He replied impatiently, "What kind of poetry are you talking about? Are you stupid because you woke up too early? It's okay, I'm hanging up."
"If you fail, I will make you fail the exam." Hui Zifeng had no choice but to threaten like this.
"Fuck you!" Song Shiwen threw his phone away and dozed off. The phone, tossed to the floor, continued to vibrate for a full ten minutes. Furious, Song Shiwen scrambled to grab the phone and was about to start cursing when he glanced out the window. He couldn't believe his eyes. That always serious, hypocritical guy was standing downstairs, waving at him.
"Hang up your brothers' as well."
"Dad, my dear dad, please speak." Song Shiwen sat on the lazy sofa in front of the French window, scratching his now-messy hair and looking down at Hui Zifeng with disdain. He thought he was going to teach in the countryside, having suddenly snatched someone else's spot just the day before, like it was a joke, just going through the motions and coming back, showing no concern for other people's lives. There really is nothing better than having a good dad. Tsk! He's really talented, so who can say anything?
"I bow to the Magpie Bridge in Yunsheng Palace. Whose husband is coming to the pavilion this morning? The deer-riding mountain god is less kind than you. The lion roars and plays with love, but the moon is not hidden in the coffin. Are you familiar with it?"
"I thought you were going to say something? Just to get me up over this? Oh, my, I'm so sorry." Song Shiwen deliberately kept silent. Seeing Hui Zifeng's lack of reaction, he felt it was meaningless, so he told him the truth, "That's a book I read a long time ago. I forgot what it was called, but it's a low-brow novel, very vulgar. Are you sure you want to read it?"
"Help me find it, please?" Hui Zifeng pleaded, "I can give you whatever you want."
Song Shiwen couldn't stand Hui Zifeng's behavior, and he got angry the moment he heard it. But then he thought, why not take this opportunity to get him to make a promise? Maybe it would come in handy in the future. He would teach him a lesson and make him remember it. He smiled nonchalantly, "Okay, that's what you said. Remember this. You can give me whatever I want. Can you do that?"
"Tell me, what do you want? State the conditions first."
"Just for this? Hui Zifeng, I treat you as a friend and wanted to agree to help you without hesitation, but you're making me look bad. How about this? I haven't thought about it yet. If I have a problem in the future, I'll call you and you'll help me unconditionally, okay?"
A sincere transaction between friends. This feeling was a bit strange, and Hui Zifeng had never experienced it before. As a child, he envied other children who exchanged their things with each other, and the loneliness in his heart at that moment was still very familiar to him. He often suspected that he was going against fate. The fortune-teller monk said that he was kind to others, but in fact, he was dismissive of many people. His superficial kindness was just homework he had learned. The fortune-teller said that he knew what he wanted, that he had a firm goal and a strong spirit, but in fact, he never knew what he was pursuing. He was in a trance, feeling bored, and everything was meaningless. Even if everything was destroyed, it would have nothing to do with him.
"Okay. Then, no matter what you ask me for, I'll give it to you."
Whatever. He had nothing he couldn't lose. Money, fame, family, even his own life—he was fearless.
"It's a deal. Wait for my news, I'll go find that thing." Song Shiwen chuckled. He didn't expect Hui Zifeng to appear serious on the surface, but his mind was filled with dirty things. He even came to him so openly for help. The difference between him and ordinary people is that he is a little thicker-skinned, haha...
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