Chapter 43
Tao Xi soon received 20,000 yuan from the sale of the paintings, and remitted 10,000 yuan of it back to Tao Le.
When he was learning painting on Sunday, he asked Qiao Henian about the person who bought the painting, only to find out that it was an amateur painter who specialized in buying some unknown but promising paintings and then selling them at a high price later.
Qiao Henian actually learned from his granddaughter that Tao Xi's family was in a bad situation, so he asked someone to sell his student's paintings to help him subsidize his living expenses and painting expenses. However, he was afraid that Tao Xi would only focus on money, so he warned him in a serious tone:
"As your paintings become more mature, more of them will enter the market, but your artistic pursuit must not be too market-oriented and cannot be completely bought by money. Do you understand?"
"I know, Grandpa."
Tao Xi naturally said yes obediently. Qiao Henian was a very good teacher. In addition to teaching him painting, he also taught him many principles of being a human being and doing things. He also changed the way he addressed him from teacher to grandpa.
"Okay, that's all we learn today. The weather is so good, I'm going out to fish with some old friends later. You can also go out and have some fun and relax." Qiao Henian said as he put down his tools.
Tao Xi was delighted. He had originally planned to meet Lin Qinhe in the evening, but now he had a few more hours. He quickly sent Lin Qinhe a WeChat message, and then helped Qiao Henian clean up the studio.
"Are you so happy to be able to go out and play?" Qiao Henian looked at the overjoyed Tao Xi with amusement, thinking that even the most well-behaved children are fond of playing.
Tao Xi coaxed Qiao Henian with a few sweet words, helped him prepare a sun hat and water cup for fishing, and walked Qiao Henian out of the yard, then waited in the courtyard for Lin Qinhe to come and pick him up.
The weather was indeed very good. The old houses with red bricks and green tiles were basking lazily in the warm winter sun. Only the grayish-white trunks and branches with a hint of green were left of the tall plane trees. The asphalt road was covered with calm plane leaves and mottled, fragmented light.
The wind and sunshine were both peaceful, just like the mood he felt while waiting for Lin Qinhe.
Lin Qinhe arrived in less than half an hour. When he arrived, Tao Xi was sitting on a bench, playing with a sycamore leaf out of boredom. When he saw Lin Qinhe walk into the courtyard, he quickly stood up and jumped over, showing the sycamore leaf to Lin Qinhe like a treasure:
"Look, this leaf is so beautiful and so big."
Tao Xi covered her face with a sycamore leaf and asked with a smile, "Is it bigger than my head?"
Lin Qinhe held Tao Xi's hand that was holding the leaf, and gently moved it away to reveal Tao Xi's face. He looked at the slightly widened eyes, whose pupils were as clear as glass in the golden sunlight. He raised the corners of his lips and said:
"It is very beautiful."
Tao Xi was stunned, thinking blankly that this was obviously not the question he was asking.
He placed the sycamore leaves on the stone table in the courtyard and got into the car with Lin Qinhe. The original plan was to treat Lin Qinhe to a meal, but today there were suddenly a few more hours, so he wanted to change the plan.
"Can I invite you to the amusement park first? I haven't been there before." Tao Xi asked.
"Okay." Lin Qinhe agreed. In fact, he had hardly ever been there, and the only one or two times he went there were when he accompanied Yang Duole.
Because it was the weekend and the weather was good, there were a lot of people in the amusement park. The two of them waited in line for nearly twenty minutes before they could get in.
Tao Xi really wanted to hold Lin Qinhe's hand, but he felt embarrassed because there were too many people around, so he had to follow Lin Qinhe closely and found all the activities interesting and worth trying.
"I want to play that." Tao Xi pointed to a haunted house not far away. He was calculating, thinking that he could hold Lin Qinhe's hand unscrupulously in the dark environment.
Lin Qinhe looked towards the haunted house and nodded in agreement.
After they bought tickets and went in, Tao Xi discovered that this haunted house was not as scary as he had imagined. They didn't have to walk, but take a small train to get in. Many children, accompanied by their parents, sat in carriages, and the carriages were painted with childish cartoon characters.
Tao Xi looked at the car full of children and said to Lin Qinhe awkwardly, "This haunted house seems to be different from what I thought."
He noticed that apart from their parents, they were the only two people over twelve years old, and some adults and staff were looking at them with amusement.
"How about we change one?" he asked.
"Need not."
Tao Xi's right hand was suddenly held by Lin Qinhe. His heart skipped a beat and he tilted his head to look at Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe pulled him into the last narrow carriage and whispered to him:
"Now we can hold hands."
Tao Xi's eyelashes trembled slightly as he looked at Lin Qinhe's profile. He felt Lin Qinhe insert his five fingers between his fingers and clasp them tightly with his palm against his, so tightly that it seemed as if they could feel each other's heartbeat through their palms.
As a bell rang, the train started slowly and drove into the dark haunted house amid the chattering of children.
Perhaps this should be called the Elf House. Amid ethereal music, graceful light and shadow cast spinning and dancing elves and ghosts, performing a story that is close yet elusive in the hazy mist that seems real but not real.
Although it was not scary and even somewhat beautiful, many children were still frightened and threw themselves into their parents' arms and cried loudly, ruining the original dream.
Tao Xi felt the warmth of Lin Qinhe's intertwined fingers, and suddenly moved closer to Lin Qinhe, turning sideways and pressing his chest against Lin Qinhe's arm.
"Are you scared?" Lin Qinhe noticed Tao Xi's dependent behavior, tilted his head and whispered in his ear.
The small train drove into the straight narrow road. Tao Xi took advantage of the dim light and shadow, suddenly stood up slightly and kissed Lin Qinhe lightly on the lips. This time there was no mistake. His pupils were shining, and he whispered to Lin Qinhe proudly:
"I learned!"
Lin Qinhe's grip on his hand suddenly increased, and before Tao Xi could react, he was pushed against the soft wall of the carriage and then a passionate kiss fell on his lips.
Lin Qinhe did not enter his mouth directly, but first held his lower lip and sucked and bit it lightly, occasionally leaving it slightly to leave him some space to breathe.
His right hand was rubbed tenderly, and his palm was so hot that he almost sweated from the contact and caress. He didn't know whether to focus on his lips or hands, he just felt his whole body was burning.
As if noticing his distraction, Lin Qinhe invaded his mouth, interlaced his lips and tongue with his, held the tip of his tongue and sucked gently. Tao Xi's head was buzzing and he was a little breathless again.
After the kiss, Tao Xi leaned against the carriage, panting, and looked around nervously. The train had just driven out of the narrow track and entered a spacious dance hall.
The little girl in the car in front suddenly turned around and looked at them. Tao Xi's eyelids jumped and he lowered his head guiltily.
When the two came out of the haunted house, Tao Xi was a little uncomfortable with the sudden change from darkness to the warm and bright sunshine, and squinted his eyes to adapt to the light.
Lin Qinhe still held his hand and walked out of the car.
"Others will see it." Tao Xi let Lin Qinhe lead him, but he kept reminding her.
"Look, every child is holding hands." Lin Qinhe said indifferently.
Tao Xi was stunned and looked at the children getting off the car. Indeed, every child was held by their parents' hands. Some children were so scared that they cried all the way, with tear marks all over their faces like little cats, and he.
Tao Xi licked her slightly swollen lower lip and looked away again guiltily.
Suddenly, Tao Xi looked up at Lin Qinhe again, squinted his eyes and asked, "Why do I feel like you are very experienced? Have you had many relationships before?"
Lin Qinhe put Tao Xi's hand into his coat pocket, took him outside, and said calmly:
"No."
"Then why should I..." Tao Xi stopped muttering halfway.
"What?" Lin Qinhe turned to look at him and raised his eyebrows slightly.
Tao Xi was stuck and said, "No, nothing happened!"
Isn't it just about accumulating experience through actual combat? He is so smart, he will learn it quickly.
The two of them played some more games. Tao Xi played the roller coaster, pirate ship, bumper car, etc. that he had seen on TV before with Lin Qinhe.
Tao Xi discovered that although Lin Qinhe didn't say it, he seemed to like playing these projects very much. He could clearly feel Lin Qinhe's unspoken joy.
So later on, Tao Xi observed which project Lin Qinhe's gaze lingered on for a longer time, and then he took Lin Qinhe to play.
It was already evening and the dusk was heavy. The two finally gave up on sightseeing and sat on a bench to rest.
Tao Xi went to the shop and bought two ice creams, one strawberry flavor and one vanilla flavor. He and Lin Qinhe ate one each. Although it was winter, the icy taste did not make people feel cold.
The setting sun was hanging right in the center of the Ferris wheel in the distant sky. The orange-red twilight was looking at them through the city's eyes. The two of them were very close. Tao Xi occasionally scooped a spoonful of vanilla ice cream from Lin Qinhe's cup. Later, Lin Qinhe didn't eat much, so Tao Xi simply took it over.
There were two little boys about seven or eight years old sitting on the bench opposite. The little boy in red clothes lowered his head and played with the Rubik's Cube in his hand. He couldn't turn it right after turning it for a long time.
"Idiot." The little boy in blue clothes next to him snatched the Rubik's Cube, but he couldn't turn it right after turning it for a long time.
The two children started arguing, calling each other stupid, and then they started crying.
Tao Xi couldn't bear to watch it anymore, so he walked over to help them turn the Rubik's Cube, but he couldn't turn it right after a while, so he subconsciously looked at Lin Qinhe who had followed over.
Lin Qinhe took the Rubik's Cube, and with his slender fingers he quickly turned it, restoring the Rubik's Cube in less than fifteen seconds.
"Wow——" The two children looked up at Lin Qinhe with admiration.
Tao Xi also looked at her boyfriend with admiration, and then exclaimed: "How come you know everything?"
Lin Qinhe bent down and returned the Rubik's Cube to the child, raised the corner of his mouth and said, "I often played with it when I was bored when I was a child."
After doing their good deed, the two returned to sit on the bench and watched the sunset over the city side by side.
Tao Xi watched the two children walk away hand in hand, and suddenly asked Lin Qinhe:
"Tell me, if, I mean if, I grew up with you, would you still like me?"
He turned to look at Lin Qinhe. The magnificent twilight softened Lin Qinhe's deep and handsome profile, like a colorful oil painting.
"Yes." Lin Qinhe answered without hesitation.
Tao Xi was stunned, and said with curved eyes: "Are you so sure? What if I am spoiled by my parents and become a very willful child, will you still like me?"
Lin Qinhe looked at Tao Xi in the twilight and whispered:
"I told you I'd love all your capriciousness."
He reached out and wiped away the milky white trace of ice cream on Tao Xi's mouth, and continued,
"Besides, you will definitely not be spoiled."
Tao Xi licked the corner of his mouth. For some reason, his eyes felt a little sore. He blinked and didn't ask the question again.
He looked at the setting sun that had been half swallowed up. The twilight turned from red gold to orange and purple, painting the sky with thick ink.
Tao Xi couldn't help but wonder what Lin Qinhe looked like when he was a child? Are you still as quiet as you are now?
If, if he had grown up with Lin Qinhe, he would definitely talk to Lin Qinhe every day and make him laugh.
He is so good at fighting that he will never let anyone bully Lin Qinhe. He will share all the delicious food and fun things with Lin Qinhe, and will give the best gift to Lin Qinhe on his birthday every year.
Maybe he would be like those two kids, he turned the Rubik's Cube in a mess, Lin Qinhe called him stupid, but he would always help him turn it right.
In spring, he would pull Lin Qinhe to go to school on a road without flowers. In summer, they would grab watermelon after swimming. In autumn, they would climb a hill covered with maple trees together and pick two red leaves to make bookmarks for each other. In winter, they would throw snowballs at each other in the snow, and when they were tired of playing, they would lie on the snow and form two "big" characters tightly together.
On weekends, he would learn musical instruments with Lin Qinhe. Lin Qinhe learned piano and he learned violin. Then they would perform together in the school's art performances.
During the long vacation, they would fly abroad with their parents. He would paint the scenery with his brush, while Lin Qinhe would take pictures of the scenery and himself with his camera.
And... there are many more.
They will surely have a wonderful childhood and adolescence together.
Tao Xi took a deep breath, shook off the fantasy in his mind, and suddenly stretched out his cold hand to Lin Qinhe's neck inside the collar. Lin Qinhe was indeed shivered from the cold, and quickly grabbed his evil hand, then put his hand into his coat pocket.
Lin Qinhe was not angry about the prank, and wrapped his hand with his warm hand in his pocket, looked at him and asked:
"What were you thinking about just now?"
"I'm wondering where to treat you to dinner tonight."
Tao Xi pulled Lin Qinhe up from the bench.
He thought, life was still so long, and that long time would belong to him and Lin Qinhe.
It seems there is nothing to regret.
The author has something to say:
Love today
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
