Extra five
The north wind that day was not so harsh, and Li Rong did not continue with that idea. He just followed Xue Heng and looked into the distance.
In the distance, the towering mountains stretch endlessly, and since it is not winter yet, there are yellow and green leaves dotted on them.
He thought of the ballads from the north, but since it was his first time riding a horse, he was in high spirits and temporarily put those things behind him.
Many bones were buried in Longxi, and withered vegetation grew again. And every year, heavy snow fell on the ground.
Li Rong's legs have completely healed, and he can walk on his own when Xue Heng is not around.
Of course, they are always together.
When the road was blocked by heavy snow, we would sit together in front of the floor-to-ceiling window to look at the endless white below.
Snowflakes falling from the sky were blown sideways by the north wind, burying the yellow sand and the road leading elsewhere. Someone from the research center had specifically warned them to take care of their health, so they could only let the cold air touch their eyes, and the thought of drinking some wine to warm them was a fleeting thought.
Li Rong's eyes fell on Xue Heng, and sometimes he would follow him to see things outside. He thought that if there was another chance in the future, he should treat Xue Heng to a drink.
Maybe with the help of alcohol, he could say what he should say, and even dared to ask Xue Heng what he thought.
He didn't know how he should view himself, but he wanted to know how Xue Heng viewed him - a person he shouldn't have known, a driving force behind this experiment.
The snow in Longxi was as fierce as the wind and sand. Even after a thousand years, it still blocked the road for several days.
Xue Heng would often sit quietly by the window, legs crossed, flipping through the few books in the room. Li Rong would glance at the titles at first, but when he saw they were unfamiliar books, he gave up.
Since it was something he didn't know, Xue Heng should be able to understand it more clearly after reading it once than if he just explained it to him once.
It was not until he was in the south of the Yangtze River and was blown by the wind mixed with moisture that Li Rong came back to his senses from such ordinary tranquility - it was not yet early spring in the south of the Yangtze River, and there were no flowers among the tall buildings.
As agreed, the researcher provided him with Li Qingyue's video. His sister only had two months left to complete her rehabilitation. He heard that soft "brother" many times at night, and the worry that had filled his heart finally eased.
Li Rong squatted down, broke off some bread, and fed the fish huddled by the bridge. The koi were mostly red, and even the bridge, along with the wooden railings, was a uniform brown-red, evoking the traditional Jiangnan style.
The swaying of the fish's tail stirred up circles of ripples on the water's surface, and the bread, broken into small pieces, was quickly swallowed by passing fish. The fish a little further away seemed to know that someone was coming to feed them, and gradually gathered in groups at his feet.
After Li Rong broke off half a piece of bread, he lost count of the fish gathered in front of him. Big and small all rushed to the surface, stirring up the stagnant water.
He leaned forward, his fingertips barely touching a drop or two of water, which carried the chill of winter. The small rivers south of the Yangtze River never freeze, but the seemingly flowing water is indeed filled with chill.
Li Rong unwrapped another piece of bread, breaking it up more carefully this time, and then scattered small pieces onto the water. The fish that had scattered when no food was thrown to them gathered together again, bumping into each other and vying for the food that had fallen before them.
Xue Heng had other things to do today, so he wasn't with him. Li Rong still felt that since arriving in Jiangnan, he had become more worried about not being able to see Xue Heng.
For some reason, he always had a palpitating feeling, as if it would be difficult for him to see Xue Heng again after some time.
Thinking of the date agreed upon with the research center, he felt that this feeling was a true intuition. Yes, once he returned to the research center, he would still have to face this experiment.
Even though he no longer thought about it often, he had not completely forgotten how he felt when he saw Xue Heng lying among the instruments - twisted pain and unbelievable horror filled his mind.
How could it be him? How could it be him? Li Rong had woken from such dreams more than once, watching himself fall to the point where he couldn't tell the difference between truth and falsehood. Was he really back? Was he really himself? If he wasn't Li Rong, who was he?
He loosened his fingertips, crushed the last crumbs and sprinkled them on the water. He stood up and prepared to go back to the room. He had been squatting for a long time, so he had to slow down.
Blood began to flow up his veins again, and his numb legs and feet continued to show the presence of his organs. Li Rong felt that he should get some sleep. Perhaps before that, he could see Xue Heng.
Seeing that Xue Heng was still by his side, he would not have those dreams in which he almost drowned, and he would always wake up immediately when he dreamed of Xue Heng.
The walk from the bridge back to the room took only a dozen minutes, and the numbness he'd felt while walking had completely dissipated. Li Rong raised his hand and knocked on the door. When no one answered, he inserted his key and walked in.
"Has Xue Heng not returned yet?" Li Rong walked to the table and accidentally caught the bag he was carrying on the corner of the table, somehow knocking over the water cup on the opposite side.
The water inside immediately poured out, flooding half of the table and completely soaking the book next to it.
Li Rong quickly put down his bag and took a towel to wipe the overflowing water. After a while, he managed to prevent the water from dripping onto the carpet.
He hesitated. The book was already mostly wet. He wanted to reach out but was afraid of disturbing the pages Xue Heng had folded earlier. He first wrapped the dripping book with a towel, but when that didn't work, he took the book to the window.
The sun, which should have been high in the sky, was blocked by clouds. In the gloomy weather, it would be difficult for the book to dry out. Since I had nothing important to do, I pulled a stool from the living room and sat on the balcony, intending to turn the pages manually. I opened the window a little, waiting for the wind to dry the thin paper.
The printed ink inevitably smudged a bit, so Li Rong moved more gently to avoid damaging the pages. After turning two or three pages, he noticed the outer hard cover could be removed. His fingertips touched the cover, which was wet.
He picked up the wet book and removed the outer cover. He felt as if his fingers touched something else. With the experience just now, he slowly pulled out the thing.
When it appeared in his sight, Li Rong realized that it was just a piece of completely soaked paper, probably some things that Xue Heng had casually written down.
He touched the tip of his nose, feeling somewhat embarrassed. Although Xue Heng probably wouldn't blame him, it was still his fault after all.
Li Rong laid the book flat on a stool and carefully used his fingertips to pry open the folded page. The material of the paper was different from the book pages, and even though it was soaked, the words written on it could still be clearly seen.
Or rather, it was something printed. Li Rong had only glanced at it lightly and was about to lift it up to dry - but after seeing Xue Heng's name, he moved the paper closer.
He seemed to have finished reading it quickly, but then felt that he didn't understand the conditions written on it. So he stretched out his fingertips and scanned line after line.
Tears fell before he could figure out the answers. Li Rong felt the wetness on his face and realized that he had cried, but he couldn't let go of the paper in his hand.
Xue Heng, Xue Zhuozhi - they really were like white cranes in the mountains and forests, not asking when they came, not seeking a way back.
It turned out that the past six months of peace were nothing more than a premeditated farewell. To call it a farewell was because he overestimated himself. Xue Heng probably wouldn't have thought too much at the time. He would have walked if he wanted to, and looked if he wanted to.
After all, what connection did Xue Heng have with this place? The place he had been away from for so long was no longer familiar to him, and the people he knew had all turned to dust, leaving no trace.
As for me, perhaps I should let it go and pretend nothing had happened. The experiment was just a failure, and I was the only surviving volunteer.
He frowned and wiped away the tears with his fingertips. Putting aside this experiment, putting aside his and Xue Heng's identities, the person he faced day and night was a person just like him.
Those tightly structured instruments could operate continuously and could also be stopped in an emergency when needed. But if he had to watch Xue Heng die on the lab table with his own eyes, he had no choice but to stop it.
Or perhaps thinking deeper, he couldn't really figure out who he was, couldn't make sense of those still vivid memories, he could ignore what happened after they died. As long as Xue Heng was still by his side, he could be at peace and have a few more days of sweet dreams.
The discussion in Linyi brought Xue Zhuozhi to Chang'an, the flood in Yingchuan kept Xue Congzhi in Chang'an, and the corpses of the Shang Dynasty trapped Xue Heng in Chang'an.
But now, how can I keep Xue Heng?
Li Rong opened his mouth in vain, unable to think of any solution. When he finally heard a knock on the door, he could only find a piece of white cloth in the house.
Judging from Xue Heng's body shape, if he insisted on leaving, there was no way that the white cloth that was not wide enough could have trapped him.
He really couldn't think of anything. He held the thin white cloth between his fingers and turned his head to see Xue Heng walk in.
Xue Heng, still smiling, asked him why he came back so early. Was there nothing good to do nearby? Li Rong was unable to respond and just waited for him to come closer.
Xue Heng didn't hear his response, and noticed the moisture at the corners of his eyes. He planned to sit on the sofa with him, coax him softly, and ask him what had happened.
Li Rong clutched the cloth tightly, his nails digging into his palms. Before him, he saw his own familiar face. He exhaled, closed his eyes for a moment, and knelt on the sofa again, approaching Xue Heng, who had just sat down.
He looked into the eyes that looked back at him, and saw the calm inky color in them, as well as the faint worry in them. So he reached out his hand, and with trembling fingertips, he covered the eyes that looked at him with the white cloth.
Li Rong leaned forward and kissed the pale lips in front of him. It was very cold - bringing with it the winter wind returning from outside and the slowly flowing water in the south of the Yangtze River.
It slowly became warm again, and the two different breaths intertwined with each other at this moment.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
