Jiang Que watched him approach little by little. Because the light was dim, his facial expression was not clear.
It was not until the car door was opened and the dome light came on, and when he sat in the driver's seat, that Jiang Que realized that his face looked very ugly, as if he had suddenly heard some bad news and seemed a little absent-minded.
In an instant, Jiang Que could almost conclude that he must have discovered something.
"Did you see it?" Jiang Que asked.
Jiang Di instinctively turned to look at him, but quickly averted his gaze as if escaping. It was as if he had only just come to his senses. He nodded hastily, "Oh, I see."
Jiang Que was still waiting for his next words, but he seemed a little absent-minded. He instinctively pulled the handbrake, started the car, stepped on the accelerator and slowly drove forward.
Passing through the gate and driving onto the road outside the community, street lights pass by one by one, casting a mixture of light and dark shadows.
It took several minutes before Jiang Di finally seemed to recover a little.
It was only then that he realized his answer was incoherent and he quickly cleared his throat. "I checked the surveillance footage. Before you came back... no one touched Huangmao."
Jiang Que certainly knew this.
A normal person would just watch and be done with this sort of thing, but there was no way they would even approach and touch the body. Even Ye Ying would probably just look at it from a distance, and there was no way they would run over and rummage through it.
The reason he said that before was just to find an excuse to watch the surveillance video. His point was not here at all.
"Among those people coming out of the building," Jiang Que asked, "is there anyone you know?"
If Jiang Di only thought this question was strange before watching the surveillance video, then now when he heard it again, he instinctively felt that this question seemed to have a hidden meaning.
However, he couldn't be sure whether Jiang Que really knew something or he was just suspicious, so after hesitating for a long time, he finally turned his head to look at Jiang Que, only to see that he was looking straight ahead indifferently, as if the question was just a casual one.
Jiang Di looked back at the road ahead, his grip on the steering wheel tightening again and again, before finally answering truthfully, "...Yes."
Jiang Que's eyes reflected the passing traffic in front of him. After hearing this answer, he turned around and looked at Jiang Di seriously.
Just when Jiang Di thought he was going to continue asking, he calmly withdrew his gaze and finally nodded slightly: "Got it."
It’s not that Jiang Que couldn’t ask further questions, and he knew that as long as he continued asking, Jiang Di would most likely not lie to him and would tell him everything he saw truthfully.
But when he turned around and saw the rare uneasiness on Jiang Di's face, he suddenly didn't want to ask anything anymore.
Jiang Di did nothing wrong.
The love and warmth he gave her was no less than any biological father. He shouldn't feel indebted and shouldn't be put in such an embarrassing situation.
That surveillance video was the truth to him, but it was undoubtedly a huge shock to Jiang Di.
This is heavy enough.
For the rest of the journey, Jiang Que didn't say anything more, and Jiang Di also drove silently, away from the bustling city and towards the sparsely populated suburbs.
Jiang Di said he would find a quiet place, so they really came to a piece of pure land with beautiful mountains and rivers. It was a scenic spot in the suburbs that was still under development and not yet open to the public. It had layers of autumn colors on the forest and a gurgling stream.
There was no moon that night, and the gloomy sky seemed to echo the sorrow of those who were leaving.
Jiang Di parked the car at the foot of the mountain, took out tools from the trunk, and walked into the forest with Jiang Que, stepping on the fallen leaves, and dug a medium-sized hole in the ground.
Jiang Que put the wooden box in his hand in it, touched the top of the box with affection, said goodbye silently in his heart, and then covered it with soil with his own hands and sprinkled a layer of soft fallen leaves on it.
After doing all this, he stood up, looked down at his empty hands, and suddenly felt a little lost.
The sudden autumn wind blew through the woods, rustling countless withered leaves that fell on his hair and shoulders, and one leaf gently touched his eyes.
He closed his eyes, feeling the leaf sliding across his cheek and jaw, as if a cat's paw was gently brushing past him, saying its final goodbye.
When I opened my eyes again, the leaf had already fallen to who knows where, but the sound of wind and rustling was still there, making everything seem desolate and quiet.
Jiang Di, who was standing next to him, looked up at the sky and gently squeezed his shoulder: "Let's go, it looks like it's going to rain."
Jiang Que nodded and turned to walk out of the woods with him.
When they walked out of the woods, they could indeed see faint flashes of lightning in the dark clouds. They quickened their pace slightly and returned to the car, opening the doors separately.
After getting in the car and fastening his seatbelt again, Jiang Di was about to start the car when he heard Jiang Que call out softly, "Dad."
"Hmm?" Jiang Di turned and looked at him.
"I want to live on campus." Jiang Que said.
This time, Jiang Di did not object immediately. He was just stunned for a moment, as if he felt it was a little sudden. Then he turned to the front and blinked, and did not respond for a long time.
Jiang Que didn't know what he was thinking, but he could feel the conflict and struggle in his heart.
But this time Jiang Que did not back down or waver, because he knew that as long as Jiang Di really saw Ye Ying on the surveillance camera, he would understand that this proposal was the best choice for the three of them - even if they were separated by mountains and seas, it was better than hurting each other.
After a long silence, Jiang Di seemed to finally understand something. He nodded in compromise, as if giving up resistance, and forced a bitter smile at Jiang Que: "Okay, Dad will arrange it for you."
The car started again and headed towards the city.
The lightning in the sky became more and more frequent, and the rumbling sound of thunder penetrated the thick dark clouds, through the lights of thousands of homes in the distance, through more than ten years of silence, overlapping with the rumbling sound over the capital tonight, and reached the ears of the two people snuggling on the roof of the villa.
Song Yecheng still hugged Jiang Que, listening quietly to him finish his past story. Thinking of what Jiang Bei said at the time, he finally understood why Jiang Que lived in the school dormitory at that time, and why his relationship with his adoptive mother Ye Ying was so complicated.
"What happened next?" Song Yecheng asked softly, "From junior high school to college, did you live on campus?"
Jiang Que nodded in his arms: "Back then, whenever there were training classes or summer camps during the winter and summer holidays, I would find excuses to attend. I knew she didn't want to see me, and I felt redundant, so it would be better for everyone if I didn't go back."
Song Yecheng's heart tightened again.
So, although Jiang Que was adopted in name, he only had a "home" for the first few years. After that, he had been living outside. Even though he was far from miserable, he was definitely not happy.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but wonder: If Jiang Que had not been taken away by them, but had returned home with him, would the outcome have been completely different?
However, now that everything is a foregone conclusion, thinking about more "what ifs" will not help and will only add to the regret.
Song Yecheng understood this very well, so he didn't dwell on it any further. Instead, he lowered his head and kissed Jiang Que's forehead: "Our little Bell is not superfluous. Look how much my parents like you, and how much those book fans like you. Your existence has always been a surprise and a gift to us."
The thunder in the sky continued, and a light drizzle was already falling.
Jiang Que raised his head slightly and met the pair of gentle eyes that were so close to him. It was as if he was immersed in a spring of warm water, washing away the dust deep in his heart bit by bit.
A few drops of rain touched his thick, long eyelashes, making his already beautiful eyes look even more clear and charming.
Song Yecheng raised his hand and gently flicked his eyelashes, wiping off the glistening water droplets, and scraped the tip of his nose: "Okay, if you don't go in now, you'll be soaked to the skin. Staying up late and getting caught in the rain, I'm really worried that your little body can't handle it."
As he spoke, he stood up on his knees and pulled Jiang Que up. He pushed his shoulders with both hands and walked around the swimming pool into the room. He closed the glass door with his backhand and walked down the stairs.
Returning to the second floor, he took the white fur from Jiang Que's arms and raised his chin towards the master bedroom: "You go take a shower first, I'll take it downstairs to eat something."
Jiang Que was probably distracted by the sudden memories, and at this moment he was extremely obedient. He nodded like a sleepy child and turned obediently to walk towards the master bedroom.
Song Yecheng carried Baimao downstairs and added some food and water to its plate. Before he could squat down to put it down, he saw it jump out of his arms and eagerly came forward to eat.
Song Yecheng snorted, squatted down, poked its head, and began to teach it a lesson: "You little bastard, three floors are not enough for you to jump? And you went to the rooftop to perform acrobatics, you want to climb up the roof and tear off the tiles? Huh?"
Baimao didn't care about his nagging at all. He shook his head impatiently to avoid his fingers, pushed the food box aside with his two paws, and hid far away. When he turned his back, he didn't forget to flick him with his tail.
Song Yecheng was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, as he had no temper with it. He watched it eating happily with a smacking sound. In the end, he could only sneer helplessly, reached out to turn on the floor lamp next to it to leave some light for it, then stood up, turned off the headlights and went upstairs.
The sound of water splashing came from the bathroom in the master bedroom. Song Yecheng put on his pajamas and took a shower in the guest bedroom bathroom. After coming out, he went downstairs and made a cup of hot milk for Jiang Que.
When he returned upstairs, he felt that a long time had passed, but there was still no one in the room.
He placed the milk on the bedside table and noticed that there was no sound of water in the bathroom. He couldn't help but walk over and knock on the door: "Are you not done washing yet? Did you fall asleep while washing?"
There was silence inside for a few seconds, and then a blurry silhouette gradually approached appeared on the frosted glass. Then the door was pulled open a little with a "click". Jiang Que poked out half of his wet head, his expression slightly embarrassed: "I forgot to take my clothes..."
Song Yecheng laughed so hard: "What are you going to do if I don't knock on the door? Are you just going to wait inside?"
Jiang Que answered honestly: "I haven't thought about it yet..."
Song Yecheng looked at the innocent eyes and red ears, and he wanted to do something bad in his heart, but then he thought that he had been through enough trouble in the past two days, and it was really not good to tease him anymore. He had to turn around and look for clothes in the closet, but he was not idle either: "Actually, you can just come out naked - there are no outsiders anyway, what's there to be embarrassed about with me?"
Jiang Que didn't respond. When he brought the clothes to the door, he reached in like a kitten, pulled them in, and then closed the door.
Song Yecheng couldn't help laughing, so he leaned against the door and waited. After a while, the door was opened again, and Jiang Que finally came out with a slightly red face.
"Oh, this little girl looks like a lotus emerging from the water."
Song Yecheng shaved his cheek and saw that his hair was still dripping with water. He walked sideways into the room, took out a towel and covered it on him, and then picked up the hair dryer.
Back at the door, he pulled Jiang Que to the bedside and raised his chin towards the carpet: "Sit down, I'll blow dry your hair."
Song Yecheng sat down on the edge of the bed, leaning over to plug in the hair dryer, while Jiang Que obediently crossed his legs and sat on the carpet between his knees.
The buzzing sound of the hair dryer soon sounded. Song Yecheng held it in one hand and gently played with Jiang Que's hair with the other hand. The hair felt wet and soft, like some newborn animal, so soft that people couldn't let it go.
The hair dryer was humming, and Song Yecheng's hands did not stop moving, but his mind couldn't help but drift away.
What Jiang Que recounted on the rooftop tonight were not pleasant experiences. They were even filled with the complexity of human nature and the cruelty of reality. But after listening to it, Song Yecheng felt not only pity and discomfort in his heart, but also a sense of relief.
He was glad that Jiang Que could talk about this past.
All along, he always felt that Jiang Que seemed to be shrouded in a layer of fog, as if there were many secrets buried in his heart, or he was carrying too many heavy past events.
Perhaps this layer of fog can sometimes serve as a protective shell for Jiang Que to isolate himself from the outside world, but at the same time, it has also become an invisible barrier that prevents them from moving from "closeness" to "intimacy".
Song Yecheng wanted to tear open this barrier.
He openly introduced Jiang Que to his parents, made their relationship public without any reservation, and organized events for their two friends to interact, all in order to resolve the barrier more quickly.
But that is far from enough.
Because they had been separated for more than ten years, he knew very little about Jiang Que's experience, so it was always difficult for him to find the right opportunity and the right gap.
But Baimao's accidental attack tonight just happened to create a crack in Jiang Que's dusty past, so that it could no longer be hidden deep in his heart, and Song Yecheng was finally able to explore it and glimpse the mottled secrets in Jiang Que's heart.
Those difficult and painful past experiences had perhaps already become a chronic illness for Jiang Que, a lingering ailment. The longer such an illness remained, the more it became like a boil, a pus-filled abscess. Only by opening and clearing it could it truly heal.
He was glad that Jiang Que was finally willing to speak up and confide these long-buried nightmares, and he was even more glad that he was the listener, the one who could accompany him to heal.
The hum of the hairdryer continued.
The sound should have been disturbing, but in the early morning, under the warm light of the house, it seemed full of life, just like the rotation of the microwave in the morning, the stirring of the washing machine in the afternoon, and the sizzling hot oil in the pot in the evening. It always makes people easily ignore its noise and feel the warmth of "home".
Jiang Que squinted comfortably on the carpet. The fingers gently moving through his hair and the unchanging frequency of the buzzing sound made him feel relaxed and comfortable. As his hair gradually dried, the sleepiness that had been washed away in the shower came back again.
Song Yecheng was still thinking about something when he suddenly felt something touching his leg. He looked down and found that Jiang Que's head had shifted a little bit and was now gently resting on his knee.
This is a completely defenseless posture of dependence.
After Song Yecheng was stunned for a moment, his heart was filled with softness and sweetness.
Jiang Que's hair was almost dry. Song Yecheng stopped what he was doing, turned off the hair dryer, then bent down and gently carried him onto his lap.
Jiang Que's eyes were still a little blurry, and he was a little confused about his sudden displacement, but after he recognized that it was Song Yecheng next to him, he immediately relaxed and leaned obediently into his shoulder.
Song Yecheng smiled lightly, raised his hand and pinched his soft cheek: "Good boy, let's discuss something?"
Jiang Que's nasal voice was soft: "Hmm?"
Song Yecheng said: "No matter what happens in the future, tell me first, okay?"
Jiang Que was already drowsy, and his mind was not clear at all at the moment. He was a little slow to react after hearing these words, as if he didn't quite understand what he meant.
But Song Yecheng was extremely patient: "During the years when we were not together, I could never participate in it again, but I want to share all your experiences with you, no matter whether they are sweet or bitter."
"The days ahead are still long, and many things may happen, but the difference is that you are no longer alone. No matter what happens in the future, I can be your support and backer, and accompany you to share the burden."
"So... rely on me a little more, okay?"
Even though Jiang Que was dazed and sleepy, these gentle words still flowed into his ears without missing a word.
All of a sudden, he felt a sour sensation in his nose, and then his vision became uncontrollably blurred.
From childhood to adulthood, he seemed to have never been able to shed tears. He did not cry when he was sent to the orphanage, nor did he cry when he was covered in bruises on the cliff. Even on the day when Huangmao fell from the building, he forced himself not to shed tears.
It is said that crying children get candy.
But there was no one around him who would give him candy.
Perhaps Jiang Di was once willing to wipe away his tears, but Ye Ying, who stood between them, was ultimately an insurmountable ditch.
However, at this moment, when he heard the words "I can be your support and backup", and the request-like words "lean on me a little more", he suddenly couldn't hold back his dry tears anymore, as if he had the power of weakness for the first time, and had the person who would give him candy.
Tears overflowed from his eyes and fell like beads. Jiang Que turned his head away somewhat at a loss and buried his face in the crook of Song Yecheng's neck.
The warmth on his neck quickly spread, and Song Yecheng realized that it was the temperature of tears, but he did not expose it or comfort him. He just raised his hand to cup the back of his head, gently stroking his freshly dried hair, quietly accompanying him and letting him vent the bitterness in his heart and his long-standing forbearance.
He knew that what Jiang Que said tonight might not be all of his past, but he was not anxious, because since a corner of this invisible barrier had been lifted, it would be completely resolved one day.
The morning light shines through the dark clouds, casting a faint glow. Raindrops fall on the floor-to-ceiling windows, dotted with crystals, and then slowly attract each other, approach each other, and merge into a winding streamline.
In the misty and rainy Luming Villa, one or two early morning window lights were lit sporadically, but the floor-to-ceiling window that was bright all night long dimmed quietly soon after, accompanying the two people in the room who had not slept for a long time as they fell into a dream of hugging each other.
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