Chapter 50 "I'm a little scared..."
The elderly person was very hospitable.
Although he had difficulty walking, he still insisted on washing three or four kinds of fruit for Lin Chaoyue.
After chatting for a while, Song Shiguang came over to call them, and the old man was reluctant to let them go.
Looking at the sky in the distance, he muttered to himself, "Rain is good, rainy days are good."
Lin Chaoyue couldn't figure out what was so good about a rainy day, but she didn't have time to think about it further because the rehearsal in the auditorium had begun.
She followed them inside.
The auditorium was spacious, and the tables and chairs that were in the way were moved aside, leaving a large open space in the middle for the performance. The only two chairs were moved by Song Shiguang and placed in the place where they could be seen most clearly.
Lin Chaoyue sat down next to Pei Shuwen.
The TV station staff hadn't left yet; they were sitting on the auditorium steps, rehearsing their announcements.
"Good formation, let's start with the first performance..."
"Dance performance 'Feathers Fall to Earth,' performed by: Qunxing Dance Charity Association, instructed by Qiu Min..."
Music begins.
A little girl dressed in pure white feathers danced gracefully.
It looks like a story-driven dance performance.
The performance was accompanied by narration, and the narrator's voice was very young, belonging to a little girl, which added a lot of fairytale charm to the story.
Lin Chaoyue, who was not usually interested in children's performances, was now watching with great interest.
When they encountered parts they didn't understand, they curiously asked, "Why did the little white feathers turn black? Did they turn evil?"
"Yes, because humans don't cherish nature and act recklessly, making everything dirty and filthy, polluting the white feathers."
"Ah... and she's a smuggler." Lin Chaoyue looked at Pei Shuwen in surprise.
Pei Shuwen: "It will turn back to color later, so watch it slowly."
Lin Chaoyue: "Oh."
She silently turned her head away, but after Pei Shuwen 'spoiled' the plot, her thoughts remained on Pei Shuwen. He sat there quietly, his expression indifferent, occasionally clapping when necessary, but it all seemed like a routine.
Does he like watching it or not?
She could never seem to figure him out.
Just as Lin Chaoyue was about to investigate further, Pei Shuwen stood up.
"I'm going out for some fresh air. You can continue reading."
The dance performance wasn't over yet, and it wouldn't be right for both of them to leave. Lin Chaoyue really wanted to go and see what was going on, but she obediently nodded and sat there quietly.
But the auditorium was surrounded by glass windows, and she glanced out a few times during the ceremony, spotting where Pei Shuwen had gone.
Lin Chaoyue watched until the next rehearsal program.
Pei Shuwen still hasn't returned.
There was a problem with the sound system halfway through, and the TV station staff were fixing it. Lin Chaoyue couldn't sit still any longer, so she pointed outside with Song Shiguang and went out to find someone.
The dark cloud in the west eventually drifted to the mountaintop. Before evening, the sky gradually darkened, and a light drizzle began to fall outside.
Lin Chaoyue raised her hand to shield herself from the rain and jogged to the dance studio across the street.
Inside was a narrow corridor with white slag walls, a gray cement floor, and old-fashioned green wooden frames on the glass windows. Some tourist attraction slogans that hadn't been completely torn off were still hanging on the walls.
This room was temporarily converted after the dance association moved here.
What is Pei Shuwen doing here?
Lin Chaoyue walked all the way to the innermost room, tiptoed, and saw people through the window in the door.
When she pushed open the door, Pei Shuwen didn't turn around, as if she knew who had come. She didn't turn around either, leaving her only with her back to her.
He must have been thinking about something; his back looked somewhat forlorn.
Lin Chaoyue looked around the dance studio. Apart from a few posters hanging on the wall and two somewhat worn cabinets containing medals, there was nothing particularly special about it.
So she glanced around and then looked at the cigarette between his fingers.
White smoke occasionally drifted out, then quickly disappeared.
She thought he didn't smoke.
Anyway, I've never smoked in front of her.
Before Lin Chaoyue went inside completely, she knocked twice on the open door and asked, "Why have you been out for so long? Aren't you going back?"
Pei Shuwen turned around and glanced at her.
Then he stubbed out the half-burnt cigarette: "Is the rehearsal over?"
"It's not over yet."
Pei Shuwen opened the window a little bit, and a gentle breeze blew in, carrying a few raindrops.
After letting the smell dissipate, he turned it off.
Actually, there was no smell of smoke in the dance studio. When Pei Shuwen walked up to her, there was only a faint fragrance and a cool breeze.
It gets colder on the mountain as evening approaches.
"Then let's go back and continue watching."
From the moment Lin Chaoyue came looking for someone until those two sentences just now, Pei Shuwen remained expressionless.
But she still keenly noticed that Pei Shuwen's gaze fell on the old cabinet next to him twice.
Lin Chaoyue also stopped and looked through the locked glass door.
First prize in the Celadon Cup Dance Competition.
Red Journey Cup Dance Creative Works Gold Award
...
Therefore, the award recipient is always Fang Qingyu.
No wonder these medals look quite vintage.
Lin Chaoyue looked at it for a while, then turned around and saw that Pei Shuwen was not looking at the cabinet, but was looking at her.
Lin Chaoyue: "You..."
Pei Shuwen: "Ask whatever you want."
Lin Chaoyue: "These are all your mother's trophies... how did they end up here?"
As far as he knew, Pei Shuwen also owned more than one property in Ningcheng.
It would be more convenient for him to see the object and think of the person if he brought it back to Ningcheng.
Pei Shuwen: "Yes, I think it's more appropriate to put it here."
In fact, this place was not originally suitable as a dance studio, but because it was about the same size as the previous dance studio in Cishan, it was changed to look the same as the previous room.
Even the sycamore tree outside this window was transplanted time and time again.
Transplanted sycamore trees are difficult to survive.
He showed a rare kind of persistence in this matter.
So it survived, and grew even more lush than before.
"Shall we go?" Pei Shuwen asked.
"Come on, it looks like it's getting dark. Should we head down the mountain soon?"
She listened to the rain outside; it seemed to be getting heavier. When she came out, it was just a light drizzle.
Pei Shuwen: "We can't go down the mountain on rainy days."
"What's the meaning?"
Pei Shuwen stopped, looked at her, and calmly repeated, "You can't go down the mountain on rainy days."
Lin Chaoyue didn't believe it, thinking Pei Shuwen was teasing her again, and stubbornly said, "If it doesn't rain, it doesn't rain. Why should I be worried if you're not worried?"
But at night.
She heard the same thing again: "You can't go down the mountain on a rainy day."
"Why?"
The little girl at the same table said, "The road down the mountain is very slippery when it rains, and you'll fall."
Lin Chaoyue climbed the mountain by herself; she could take two steps at a time. She could just be careful when going down.
She always felt that since she could come up, she could come down whenever she wanted.
"If I had walked slower, I probably wouldn't have fallen, right?" Lin Chaoyue ate a grape with a toothpick.
The little girl thought for a moment and nodded in agreement. Lin Chaoyue then looked at Pei Shuwen sitting opposite her with satisfaction.
Then the little girl gasped for breath and said quietly, "If I walk slowly and don't fall, I should be able to see the snake clearly."
Lin Chaoyue felt a chill run down her spine for a moment.
"Snake... what does that mean?"
Pei Shuwen calmly explained, "This mountain is quite primitive. Usually, when it rains and there are no tourists, the animals in the mountain will come out to forage for food, such as snakes, insects, rats, and ants."
After he finished speaking, he calmly handed her the paper cup to cool the water.
"The water isn't hot, it's drinkable now."
Song Shiguang could hear the two talking from a great distance.
Holding the tray, he sat down next to Pei Shuwen and said, "Brother Pei, you and Lin Lu can rest assured and stay here. Grandma Tian has already gone to arrange rooms. The TV station staff won't be coming down the mountain tonight. Tomorrow morning, I'll drive my dad's van and take you back to the city together."
Lin Chaoyue suddenly felt that the rice in her bowl didn't taste good anymore.
Even the sweet grapes lost their flavor when chewed.
I just want to know if what they're saying is true.
Lin Chaoyue: "Really? I'm so easy to fool, don't lie to me."
Song Shiguang seemed completely unfazed: "Really? When we first moved here, two snakes got into the hall. We sprinkled realgar on them, and since people have been living here, we haven't seen them since."
Lin Chaoyue swallowed hard and conceded on the spot: "Then let's go down the mountain tomorrow."
But not going down the mountain is one thing.
Nobody said she'd be sharing a room with Pei Shuwen tonight.
After dinner, when Lin Chaoyue heard about the room arrangements for the evening, her eyes widened in shock, even more so than if she had heard there was a snake in the mountains.
When she saw the bed covered with bright red sheets, she was completely baffled.
"Did Grandma Tian make a mistake in the arrangements?" Lin Chaoyue felt utterly hopeless.
"I see there are several young women working at the TV station. Can't I share a room with them?"
Song Shiguang scratched his head: "It's possible, but Grandma Tian said that since you and Brother Pei are boyfriend and girlfriend, according to Yuntai's custom, the first time you come to our house, you have to sleep in the same room, which symbolizes harmony and happiness."
“There are only single beds on the mountain. Grandma Tian even found two that were about the same size and put them together for dinner.”
"Grandma Tian, have you misunderstood something? Shall I go and explain it to you?"
To be honest, Song Shiguang was also a little confused, but Grandma Tian went to bed at eight o'clock every day. After giving him instructions, she kicked him out.
Lin Chaoyue didn't care that there were other people around, and directly tugged at Pei Shuwen's sleeve twice.
Seeing his nonchalant attitude, she gritted her teeth in frustration: "You better think of something! Are we really going to have to sleep in the same room?"
Didn't you say you had thought it through?
"Think about what... I haven't thought about it! We said we'd pretend to be a couple, but we didn't say we couldn't go down the mountain tonight, let alone that we'd stay together!"
Lin Chaoyue's mind raced, and she belatedly realized, "Oh, so you knew I wasn't coming down the mountain tonight and deliberately set me up? I only bit your lip, why are you retaliating like this!"
"Um... Pei-ge's lips, you bit them, didn't you?" Song Shiguang said as if she had stumbled upon some incredible gossip.
Surprised.
And finally, quite sensibly, he left.
With such a close relationship, there's no need for him to explain anything.
Who knows, maybe the two of them have already been living together somewhere he can't see.
Seeing Song Shiguang run off in a flash, Lin Chaoyue plopped down on the bed in anger and started to act spoiled: "I don't care, I'm staying in this room by myself tonight, you can go and squeeze in with Song Shiguang."
"Song Shiguang has a single bed."
"Then you can sleep on the floor."
“Grandma Tian lives next door to Song Shiguang. I’ll stay there tonight, and she’ll know we’re lying to her first thing tomorrow morning.”
"What should we do then?" Lin Chaoyue asked with a distressed expression.
Pei Shuwen thought for a moment and proposed a compromise: "This house has two rooms, one inside and one outside, and the beds are also put together. I will move one to the outer room to sleep, and we will put them back together tomorrow morning."
"Okay, let's move now!"
The two of them moved the bed and remade it, which took a lot of effort. Lin Chaoyue was exhausted after a long day and finally lay down after all that work.
Although it was an old house, the soundproofing between the inner and outer rooms was quite good. She listened to the sounds from the outer room but couldn't hear Pei Shuwen's voice; she could only hear the rustling of leaves in the wind outside the window.
Lin Chaoyue closed her eyes contentedly.
The rustling of the leaves, which started as a gentle white noise, gradually became eerie as she scrolled through her phone and the branches swayed in the wind, slapping against the glass.
She nervously pulled the blanket tighter around herself.
But it didn't help; the strange sound made her uncontrollably recall some ghost stories from the mountains.
Moreover, the glass flickers and doesn't look very sturdy.
It won't break in the middle of the night, will it...?
After a third gust of wind swept through the outside, Lin Chaoyue decisively knocked on the door from the inside.
Pei Shuwen.
"What's up?"
"Yes..." Although I was embarrassed, it was my instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm that made me do it.
Lin Chaoyue steeled herself and came out of the inner room, clutching her pillow. "I'm a little scared... Can I sleep in the same room with you tonight?"
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