Chapter 7

Fang Zhuo didn’t understand why every time she had nowhere to go, she would run into Yan Lie.  

She couldn’t tell if it was the smallness of the city or the mysteriousness of fate.

Yan Lie saw her lackluster appearance and chuckled, “What a coincidence.” 

He was wearing the simplest of short sleeves and shorts, carrying a plastic bag, clearly out in the middle of the night to buy some snacks.  

“Let’s go.”  

Fang Zhuo said, “Are you treating me to dinner again?”  

“Treating you to sleep,” Yan Lie waved his hand, “My place is nearby, and no one’s home. If you’re not scared, come with me.”  

Fang Zhuo thought to herself, she had dealt with both the gods of poverty and misfortune, so what was there to be afraid of? She grabbed her bag and followed him.

The night road was quiet, and Yan Lie’s wide slippers made rhythmic sounds as they hit the ground.  

He pulled out a bottle of drink from the bag and offered it to Fang Zhuo, but she politely shook her head.

“How did you end up here?” Yan Lie asked, “Isn’t the way back to school in the other direction?”  

Fang Zhuo vaguely replied, “I got lost.”  

“Was it the same as last time?”  

Fang Zhuo muttered an “mm” sound.  

“Then am I your lucky star?” Yan Lie pointed at the peaceful little path illuminated by the orange light and smiled sideways, “When you get lost, it activates the passive pathfinding function, destination: Guide, Lie Lie.”  

Fang Zhuo lazily opened her eyes, glanced at the long shadow trailing behind him, and said, “Then I’d rather not meet you.”  

“You getting lost doesn’t change whether you meet me or not,” Yan Lie said, “If I hadn’t found you, you’d have had to sleep on the street.”  

Fang Zhuo tilted her head slightly, wondering, “Why were you looking for me?”  

Yan Lie froze for a moment, a trace of regret flashing in his eyes, mixed with a bit of confusion, but it was quickly hidden by his lowered eyelids.

He hadn’t done anything.  

He had just found that the buses coming back from Li Village were few. If Fang Zhuo had returned to the city and wasn’t lucky, she might miss the last bus back to school.  

He’d been bored staying at home alone, so after playing some games with Zhao Jiayou, he wandered around the street for a while after his roommate went home for dinner. By the time he realized it, he had walked to the bus stop. He sat in a nearby small shop, observing the figures and traffic across the street.

But when the last bus arrived at the stop, Fang Zhuo hadn’t gotten off.  

Yan Lie self-deprecatingly thought he had worried for nothing, maybe she was going to spend the night there and hadn’t said she’d be back. He was about to head home, but on the way, he found her, this wandering person.

Yan Lie hid his thoughts with a laugh, “It’s nothing, I was just kidding. Do you believe me?”  

Fang Zhuo remained silent for a moment before asking, “…Do I look that stupid?”  

Yan Lie chuckled lowly a couple of times, then said nothing more.  

He didn’t pry into why Fang Zhuo was in such a sorry state, which made her breathe a little easier.  

Yan Lie’s home wasn’t that close; they walked for nearly an hour before reaching the door.  

Halfway through, Fang Zhuo thought to herself, this person must have been bitten by mosquitoes and lost his mind, coming out for a walk in the middle of the night for no reason.  

Ahead, Yan Lie pulled out his key and gestured for her to come over.  

The light came on, revealing a clean and spacious decor.

Fang Zhuo took a quick glance without focusing on the details and walked into the living room, sitting upright on the sofa.  

Yan Lie didn’t have a guest room, but the sofa was big enough. He grabbed a clean blanket and brought it to the sofa, then pointed out the bathroom to Fang Zhuo. Seeing that she wasn’t too comfortable, he willingly stepped into the master bedroom to give her some space.

Fang Zhuo sat awkwardly for a while, then took her bag to the coffee table.  

Since she had napped on the bus, she wasn’t tired at all and decided to take out her workbook and do the assignments for the week.

Yan Lie wasn’t used to having someone in his home. He already had trouble sleeping, and now with Fang Zhuo there, he couldn’t sleep well.  

By midnight, when he noticed the light seeping through the crack in the door, he got up to use the bathroom and saw that Fang Zhuo was doing homework.  

This diligent student didn’t turn off the living room light until around 2 or 3 a.m. Yan Lie sleepily noted to himself that Fang Zhuo’s energy was really impressive; the energy she had absorbed during the day seemed to power her through the night.

The next morning, Yan Lie was woken by the sound of the door opening and closing. Although Fang Zhuo tried to be quiet, it still gave him a slight start.  

It took him two seconds to recall what had happened the night before, and he quickly ran out of his room barefoot.

The living room was nearly unchanged, still as cold and empty as before, with a transparent plastic bag hanging on the door handle. It was obvious that it contained soy milk and buns.  

Yan Lie opened the door, and Fang Zhuo was waiting for the elevator outside.

He raised his hand to mess with his disheveled hair and asked, “Where are you going?”

Fang Zhuo replied, “Back to school?”

“I’m going back too,” Yan Lie said, “I’ll go back with you after breakfast. Do you know the way?”

This question was somewhat insulting. Fang Zhuo hesitated for a moment but still turned back into the room.

Yan Lie quickly tidied up, had breakfast, then went downstairs to ride his bicycle, carrying his deskmate toward school.

Fang Zhuo sat behind, feeling that today’s sunlight was especially dazzling. Her head felt dizzy, and she lowered her head to lean against Yan Lie’s back.

They left early, and when they arrived at school, there weren’t many people there yet.

Fang Zhuo’s mind was a bit foggy, so she went straight to her seat in the classroom and began solving problems. Yan Lie originally wanted to chat with her to pass the time, but seeing that she wasn’t enthusiastic, he gave up and started playing a game on his phone instead.

Students trickled in, and the classroom became lively for a moment before settling back into quiet.

In the afternoon, there was a self-study period. The class teacher entered holding lesson plans, said some routine words to motivate the class, and then asked the class leaders to organize a big cleaning.

The sports meet and the Mid-Autumn holiday were approaching, so the senior year decided to clean the corridors, bathrooms, and other public areas in advance. This way, the students on duty could easily arrange it and go home earlier.

The students got up to move desks and chairs and clear the area.

Fang Zhuo drew the task of mopping the floor, responsible for the corridor section. After the students sweeping the floor finished, she slowly took the clean mop and began to work.

The class teacher spoke with the physical education committee to go over some details before coming back to inspect the work. When she saw Fang Zhuo’s efficient figure, she nodded in satisfaction and said to the nearby boys, who were joking around, “Did you see? This is how you mop the floor, not like you guys. You’re just skimming the surface, obviously never doing housework.”

Zhao Jiayou said, “Teacher, that’s not fair. Our posture might not be perfect, but we’re strong! We’ve cleaned away all the old stains!”

Shen Musi shouted in agreement, “Exactly, teacher, you’re biased!”

“You guys talk too much and always clean in a haphazard way,” the class teacher said disdainfully. “I’m not using Fang Zhuo as the standard, but at least don’t be too far off, okay?”

As the group was talking and laughing, Fang Zhuo suddenly stumbled backward, leaned against the wall, and collapsed.

Zhao Jiayou noticed out of the corner of his eye and shouted in alarm, “Fang Zhuo!”

The crowd quickly gathered around.

The class teacher supported her and called her name a few times, but Fang Zhuo didn’t respond, appearing to have lost consciousness. She hurriedly said, “Carry her to the infirmary, quickly!”

Zhao Jiayou was slow to react. Just as he crouched down to lift her, Yan Lie, who appeared out of nowhere, grabbed Fang Zhuo’s hand and lifted her onto his back, following the class teacher toward the infirmary.

·

Fang Zhuo’s dream was long and chaotic.

It seemed like she had returned to the old house of Ye Yuncheng, quietly watching the people inside through the window. It was like when she was a child, standing in the corner of the yard, quietly observing the elderly person weaving carefully.

Grandma didn’t like her.

Fang Zhuo had known this since she was very young.

The old lady always kept her eyebrows low and walked past her silently. Her gaze rarely fell on her, and her lips seldom curved into a smile.

She really liked weaving clothes, making many clothes and giving them to others. Fang Zhuo wanted to talk to her, to cling to her, to get close to her, but she would always say: “I’m busy, go play somewhere else.”

Fang Zhuo could only sit by and watch her.

At that time, Fang Zhuo was still young, noisy, and probably not very likable. After running into a wall with the only elder in the family, she began to wonder about the other relatives. Whenever she asked about them, her grandmother seemed to only give her a superficial response, telling her there were none, that she had no other family.

Feeling neglected, Fang Zhuo, during that rebellious, wild childhood period, tried to run away from home, hoping to test her grandmother’s sincerity. Maybe it was because a child’s tactics always seemed especially naive in the eyes of adults, or maybe it was because her grandmother was sure Fang Zhuo had nowhere else to go. The young child waited in the nearby fields until late at night, but her grandmother never came to get her. 

In the darkness of the night, the courtyard lights were on but dimmed as midnight approached. The cicadas’ loud calls filled the air, while the doors and windows remained tightly shut. Realizing the truth, Fang Zhuo, bothered by mosquito bites, returned home in defeat.

From then on, Fang Zhuo’s rebellious phase began. She started skipping classes. When the thin grandmother found out, she took Fang Zhuo’s schoolbag and threw it into the nearby water field, coldly saying, “If you don’t want to study, then don’t. You can just do the same as those people, work in the fields. When you grow up, get married, have kids, and stay here for your whole life.”

Fang Zhuo was scared, even though she couldn’t fully understand the meaning behind her words at the time. She picked up her schoolbag and cleaned it in the river. From then on, she became more sensible, realizing that she shouldn’t beg for someone else’s affection.

She was actually very sad. Even now, when she recalls it, she can remember the salty, bitter tears that soaked her pillow at the time. But it also broke her rebellious spirit, making her forget all the things she shouldn’t compare, and guided her back to the right path. That was the first time she truly understood what reality meant.

Reality is an unbearable burden, a high wall that comes crashing down. It’s a future with no choices, a wandering with no place to rely on.

During that time, Fang Zhuo often lay on the grass in the back mountain, basking in the dappled sunlight filtered through the leaves, feeling the gentle and lonely breeze in the forest, and reflecting on various problems of adolescence. When the sun set behind the mountain, she would carry a basket of fresh rabbit grass back to feed the rabbits at home.

The road home was always very long, and Fang Zhuo always took a long time to walk it. The setting sun cast a golden glow, creating complex shadows in the trees. At the end of the path, a dim yellow light appeared, like a cluster of distant stars on the horizon. She walked through the woods for so long that it felt as if the sun was about to rise, to illuminate the empty, quiet road.

The golden light pierced through the thick clouds, lighting the path in front of her and behind her.

Fang Zhuo furrowed her brows and looked up at the now clear sky. The dreamlike world became blurry, and her disoriented mind was pulled back by the light passing over her eyelids.

She opened her eyes and, through the mist, saw a tall figure sitting with their back to the light. She blinked hard, and once her vision cleared, she realized she was lying on a small white bed. A soft, warm sunset was shining through the window, landing on her face. It was this fading ray of sunshine that woke her up.

Yan Lie clearly didn’t turn around, but casually reached out, pulling the curtain to block the light, and said, “I’ve grown eyes on the back of my head, isn’t it impressive?”

Fang Zhuo: “…”

“Fang Zhuo.”

Still not quite understanding, Fang Zhuo froze when Yan Lie suddenly turned around, calling her seriously.

Fang Zhuo’s throat itched, and she swallowed hard, hoarsely asking, “What’s up?”

Yan Lie opened his mouth, hesitated for a moment, then seriously said, “Do you know? You talk in your sleep.”

Fang Zhuo, taken aback by his serious expression, nervously asked, “What did I say?”

Yan Lie replied, “Inverse trigonometric functions.”

Fang Zhuo’s mind was immediately thrown into another dimension. Reflexively, she said, “You’re talking nonsense, that’s not even this year’s exam topic.”

“Wow, you caught me,” Yan Lie laughed loudly, reached over to adjust the blanket, “Rest a little longer. The doctor said you’re too tired. If you’re still uncomfortable, we’ll have to take you to the hospital.”

Fang Zhuo mumbled an “mm” and wiped her face, feeling an unusual wetness on it. Before she could think it through, Yan Lie handed her a banana, asking, “Do you want one?”

Fang Zhuo felt like she had been doing all sorts of chores in a dream for a long time. Now, weak and exhausted, she accepted it.

She leaned back against the bed’s headboard, eating the banana, while Yan Lie played on his phone next to her.

Fang Zhuo glanced over and asked, “What are you playing?”

“A small game,” Yan Lie waved his hand, “Do you want to play?”

Fang Zhuo didn’t refuse, so Yan Lie sat beside her, showing her how to play.

The bright colors and cheerful background music, paired with the simple rules, made it a very basic puzzle game. Fang Zhuo patiently played two rounds. She asked, “How is this made?”

Yan Lie was unsure how to explain, “It needs designers, developers, programmers, testers, etc., a whole team to make it.”

Fang Zhuo nodded, half-understanding, and handed the phone back to him, sitting in a daze afterward, lost in thought.

Yan Lie asked, “What are you thinking about?”

Fang Zhuo softly replied, “I’m thinking about going to university.”

Yan Lie curiously asked, “Which university do you want to go to?”

Fang Zhuo shook her head. “I don’t know.”

“Then what do you want to major in?” Yan Lie glanced at his phone. “Computer science? Game programming?”

“I don’t know.” Fang Zhuo slowly blinked her eyes, her gaze unfocused. “I want to know more things, so I want to go to university.”

Yan Lie was defeated by her thirst for knowledge and laughed, “That’s good. They say the eyes are the windows to the soul, and university is the window to knowledge.”

Fang Zhuo didn’t argue, simply responding with a quiet “Mm.”

Seeing how obedient she was, Yan Lie felt a bit guilty. After all, he had just spoken nonsense. However, after a second thought, he felt that what he said wasn’t wrong.

Two minutes later, Fang Zhuo wiped her face and climbed out of the hospital bed.

“Reboot complete ah? This speed can beat 99% of users in the country,” Yan Lie said, looking at her refreshed appearance. He asked curiously, “Where are you going?”

Fang Zhuo said, “Going back to study.”

Yan Lie was surprised. “Do you really like studying that much?”

Fang Zhuo replied, “No, I don’t.”

“I don’t like it either,” Yan Lie said. “Then why are you in such a hurry to go back?”

Fang Zhuo bent over to fold the blankets and said with a smile, “What else can I do? Find a place to cry?”

Yan Lie gave her a strange look when he heard this. When Fang Zhuo looked back at him, he casually turned away, pretending nothing had happened.

He stuffed his phone into his pocket and said, “I’ll take you back to the classroom.”