Chapter 5: Lu Liu’s Expressionless Face Becomes Even More…

When Lin Qingye opened the door and entered, Lin Zhi had just placed the meal on the dining table.

“Yo!” Lin Qingye laughed, “When did my son become so good at cooking? It looks pretty good.”

Lin Zhi remained silent, his gaze fixed on Lin Qingye’s face, which was wrinkled with a smile, almost greedily.

Lin Qingye, being a rough man, didn’t notice anything unusual about Lin Zhi. He washed his hands in the kitchen and immediately picked up his chopsticks to start eating.

“Mmm—” Lin Qingye casually tasted the food. “It’s just a little bland.”

Lin Zhi knew it was bland. In his previous life, Lin Qingye had been diagnosed with lung cancer, and the doctor had recommended a bland diet. Lin Zhi had gotten used to making it that way.

“Dad,” Lin Zhi sat down and began eating, “Are you going to work tomorrow?”

“No,” Lin Qingye said, grabbing a large portion of food with his chopsticks, “I have Sundays off. Did you forget?”

“No,” Lin Zhi gently shook his head, “Then come with me tomorrow.”

“Where are we going?” Lin Qingye asked casually.

“You’ll know when we get there.”

The next morning, Lin Zhi, seeing that Lin Qingye hadn’t had breakfast yet and had been fasting for over eight hours, hurriedly urged him to leave.

When they arrived at the “J City People’s Hospital,” the golden letters on the building made Lin Qingye’s expression shift to one of concern.

“What’s wrong with you?” Lin Qingye grabbed Lin Zhi’s arm, looking him up and down, and asked repeatedly, “How long has it been? Why didn’t you tell me earlier? Did you cry yesterday because of this?”

“It’s not that, I’m not feeling unwell,” Lin Zhi said tactfully, “Hmm… Let’s just do a full-body checkup.”

“Why do a checkup if nothing’s wrong?” Lin Qingye clearly didn’t believe him. “Tell me what’s really wrong.”

“I really don’t have any issues,” Lin Zhi said helplessly, “I just want to do a checkup with you. Also, Dad, could you lower your voice a bit…”

Lin Qingye’s expression suddenly became strange, as if he wanted to say something but held back. “You’re not…”

Lin Zhi: “???”

“We can do the checkup first,” Lin Qingye said, quickly taking Lin Zhi into the hospital, reassuring him constantly while they waited in line, “Don’t worry, maybe you’re just overthinking. Even if it’s… found early and treated in time, it won’t have too much of an impact.”

Lin Zhi was left bewildered by the comfort, while the other people in the corridor seemed to already know about his “condition,” casting him sympathetic glances.

“Dad,” Lin Zhi lowered his voice, “Did you misunderstand…?”

“Lin Zhi?” The nurse called his name.

“Go in,” Lin Qingye patted Lin Zhi on the shoulder and said earnestly, “It’s fine, I’ll wait for you outside.”

Lin Zhi was almost pushed by Lin Qingye to the nurse, and then the nurse led him through the various examinations.

When he came out, Lin Qingye handed him a warmed-up sandwich, and Lin Zhi took it without thinking.

“How was it?” / “Dad, have you eaten?”

They both asked at the same time.

“I’ve eaten,” Lin Qingye’s mouth still had some crumbs, and he asked again, “How about you?”

“Results will be out in three days,” Lin Zhi could only rub his forehead. Lin Qingye didn’t get the right checkups done, but he, on the other hand, had gone through all this trouble.

“Should we go see an infectious disease specialist?” Lin Qingye asked.

“Why go to an infectious disease specialist?” Lin Zhi asked in return.

“Ah,” Lin Qingye sighed, raising his hand and resting it on Lin Zhi’s shoulder, which had grown to match his own height. “It’s my fault. You’ve never had a mother around since you were young, and now you’re all grown up. I forgot to teach you some things, which is why you ended up…”

“Wait, wait, wait,” Lin Zhi increasingly felt something was off and couldn’t help interrupting, “Dad, what exactly did you misunderstand?”

“Didn’t you think you caught some illness?” Lin Qingye asked.

“Of course not,” Lin Zhi facepalmed. “Where did you even come to that conclusion?”

“Well, as long as it’s not that,” Lin Qingye sighed with relief, “Who told you to be so mysterious and suddenly ask for a checkup, then tell me to speak quietly?”

“That’s because…” Lin Zhi couldn’t explain it. Since Lin Qingye couldn’t get the checkup done today, Lin Zhi changed the subject, “Forget it, let’s head back. I need to go review at school early today.”

In his past life, Lin Qingye passed away in a hospital bed, and ever since then, Lin Zhi had developed a dislike for the smell of hospitals. He always felt the disinfectant had an air of death to it.

When Lin Zhi arrived at school, it was almost five o’clock in the afternoon.

He first went back to the dormitory, where no one was around. He wasn’t sure if they hadn’t returned to school yet or if they were studying in class.

After dropping off his things, Lin Zhi called Yao Wenjing.

“Hello,” Yao Wenjing’s voice was soft, “Xiao Zhi, you’re here so early?”

“Mm,” Lin Zhi subconsciously lowered his voice, “Where are you now?”

“In the dorm.”

“Come to my dorm,” Lin Zhi said, “Bring your books. We’ll have dinner together, and after that, we’ll go to the classroom.”

“Okay,” Yao Wenjing replied without any objections, “I’ll come down right away.”

Yao Wenjing was in Class 11, and his dorm was on the floor above Lin Zhi’s. In less than three minutes, Lin Zhi heard the knock on the dorm door.

He opened the door to find Yao Wenjing, smiling with his eyes and eyebrows curving into a perfect arc.

Yao Wenjing looked very obedient, with delicate features. However, possibly due to family reasons, he seemed a bit insecure, and he always had a humble, submissive aura when interacting with others.

When Lin Zhi first got to know Yao Wenjing, he had noticed his sensitivity. It had taken a lot of time and effort for Yao Wenjing to open up and show his true self to Lin Zhi.

“Xiao Zhi,” Yao Wenjing called out.

It was hard for Lin Zhi to connect the obedient student in front of him with the Yao Wenjing he had seen in the bar, under the bright, colorful lights, with exquisite makeup. But they were undoubtedly the same person.

“Mm,” Lin Zhi responded, “Xiao Jing.”

That was the closest nickname they had for each other.

Lin Zhi always regretted that after losing contact for over a year, the first time he saw Yao Wenjing again in the bar, he instinctively called out, “Yao Wenjing,” but Yao Wenjing, surprised at first, still called him “Xiao Zhi.”

They were the best of friends, but while Lin Zhi had many other normal friends, Yao Wenjing was someone who only showed kindness to him.

“Is there no one in your dorm?” Yao Wenjing asked softly.

“No,” Lin Zhi stepped aside, “Hurry in. Once I finish tidying up, we’ll go eat.”

Yao Wenjing sat down in Lin Zhi’s chair, using the waiting time to memorize a few more vocabulary words.

Lin Zhi handed him the desk lamp he had brought for him, then split the snacks and fruits into two portions, placing one portion next to the lamp.

“Leave it here for now. Don’t forget to come pick it up after evening study.”

“All of this is for me?” Yao Wenjing asked, confused.

“Mm.”

“That’s too much,” Yao Wenjing declined. “My allowance is almost gone. Take some back with you.”

“You don’t need to give me money,” Lin Zhi pretended to be unhappy. “It’s my treat.”

“Then I won’t take it,” Yao Wenjing said seriously, looking at Lin Zhi. “Money can hurt feelings.”

“You’ve given me more than this before,” Lin Zhi muttered instinctively.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Lin Zhi said, “Do you want it? I specially brought it for you. The holidays are coming up, and I won’t be able to finish it anyway.”

Before Yao Wenjing could refuse again, Lin Zhi added, “There’s plenty of time. Maybe in the future, I’ll need your help.”

Yao Wenjing thought for a long while before accepting Lin Zhi’s kind gesture. “Alright, if you ever need anything, make sure to tell me. I’ll help with whatever it is, even though right now… but once we get into college, I’ll be capable of helping.”

“Mm,” Lin Zhi believed Yao Wenjing’s words. In fact, Yao Wenjing did live up to them. “Don’t put too much pressure on yourself.”

Yao Wenjing’s strong desire to escape from his father had caused him to put too much psychological pressure on himself. No matter how hard he studied, his grades remained only above average.

Although Lin Zhi didn’t want to think about Lu Liu, he had to admit that Lu Liu was quite gifted academically. Lin Zhi had never seen him study late into the night or push himself. He rested when others rested and spent a lot of time on extracurricular hobbies, yet his grades were always among the best.

Don’t ask Lin Zhi how he knew about Lu Liu’s schedule, just ask Chen Guyang from his past life.

“Alright,” Yao Wenjing replied obediently, then added, “It’s almost senior year. You should start taking things seriously.”

“Alright, I will,” Lin Zhi smiled, this was exactly what he had planned. “Let’s go, time to eat.”

“Don’t take this as a joke,” Yao Wenjing stepped out of the dorm first. “Actually, you’re really smart. You just haven’t focused on your studies. If you do, your grades will improve very quickly.”

“Thanks,” Lin Zhi locked the door, facing away from Yao Wenjing. “For thinking so highly of me.”

“I’m serious,” Yao Wenjing said with utmost sincerity. “I won’t force you to do things you don’t like, but I still hope you can become better. You’re so great, but others can’t see your brilliance.”

“I’m serious too,” Lin Zhi muttered, struggling with the lock. After two years since high school graduation, he never thought the first thing to trip him up wouldn’t be his studies, but the lock on the dormitory door. “Damn it, why can’t I get this door to lock?”

“I’ll do it,” Yao Wenjing took the key from Lin Zhi.

Lin Zhi swapped positions with Yao Wenjing and continued with his unfinished sentence. “I’m serious, starting now I’ll focus on my studies. If possible…”

Just then, Lin Zhi heard the sound of a door opening behind him. He instinctively turned around, the words he had been about to say slipped out before he could stop them. “…Let’s go to the same university.”

Lu Liu, with a bag slung over one shoulder, glanced at Lin Zhi with an unreadable expression, before shifting his gaze away in less than a second.

“Is that okay?” Yao Wenjing didn’t notice what had just happened. His voice was full of excitement. “That’s great! I was worried we wouldn’t be able to see each other often after high school, that you and I might grow distant.”

“O-of course,” Lin Zhi stuttered, “Even if we can’t go to the same school, we can go to the same city.”

Lu Liu’s already expressionless face grew even colder.