Author: 颜凉雨 / Yan Liang Yu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 56: Sheng and Wang

Xu Wang waited at the corner of the corridor for a few minutes, deliberately waiting until the class bell rang and the teacher entered the classroom to begin the lecture. Only then did he sneak in through the back door of the classroom, stepping at the same frequency.

The teacher ignored him.

Unfortunately, still, about 80% of the classmates, in a moment of unexpected empathy, turned their heads in unison to look at him.

There was no malice in those pairs of eyes.

Those he was close with on regular days showed concern and worry, and those he was distant from showed sympathy or mere curiosity.

His mother had passed away.

A catastrophe greater than the sky falling.

Fortunately, Xu Wang thought, they didn’t yet know that he had only lived with his biological father for less than a week before being sent back. Otherwise, the life committee members would have prepared a donation box before the end of school today to collect love on his behalf.

Ignoring all the gazes, he swiftly sat in his own seat, put down his backpack, took out his books, and looked at the blackboard. His expression was natural, and his body was relaxed, as if this was just another ordinary afternoon, where he would usually go back to the dormitory for a nap, usually arrive at the first class on time, and usually sneak back to his seat through the back door.

He moved with the ease and casualness of a well-trodden path.

The teacher tapped on the blackboard, and the students, who had been looking back or sideways, withdrew their attention.

Among those retracting gazes, the feelings of pity and sympathy faded, replaced more by confusion, bewilderment, disapproval, or hesitancy to speak. But in the end, all eyes returned to the blackboard.

Xu Wang was quite satisfied.

Too much warmth and kindness could make one fragile; a bit of indifference was just right.

“Page 86…” The English teacher led everyone into today’s review focus.

Xu Wang lowered his head to flip through the book, seizing the moment to blink hard.

Suppressing the burning, sour feeling mixed with hot tears.

Someone next to him was looking at him. Xu Wang was extremely sensitive to such gazes. On a regular day, if he was looked at like this, he would happily fantasize about writing a persuasive essay titled “My Class Monitor Seems to Like Me Too”.

But today, he lacked such a light-hearted spirit. He could only look back honestly, thick-skinned, silently asking Wu Sheng, “Miss me?”

Perhaps because his smile was too bright, Wu Sheng’s look wasn’t very pleasant.

After a few seconds, a stack of stapled papers was thrown over, along with a paper ball that kissed his forehead.

He unfolded the paper ball. Naturally, it was the class monitor’s neat handwriting—Last week’s mock exam paper.

Xu Wang flipped through them one by one, all blank papers, with the answers written separately at the end of each subject. Key questions even came with explanations. It was obvious that he was supposed to do them first and then check the answers meticulously… Wait, mathematics, English, science…

Xu Wang looked up, giving his best friend a puzzled eyebrow raise with his hand over his heart—Where’s my favorite subject, Chinese?

Class Monitor Wu lowered his head and quickly wrote another note, crumpled it, and skillfully flicked it over.

Xu Wang, not wanting to be fooled twice, caught it quickly and unfolded it—Greed is like a snake trying to swallow an elephant.

Xu Wang couldn’t help but laugh.

This time, his laughter was genuine.

Wu Sheng was recognized as the top student in overall grades in the grade and first in every subject without fail, except for Chinese.

Xu Wang was known for his uneven subjects, being mediocre in math, English, and science but always at the top in Chinese. He was the brightest star in the heart of Lao Zhang, the Chinese teacher.

If it weren’t for the broader range of majors in science in university and the private desire to stay in the same class as Wu Sheng, Xu Wang would have chosen humanities when it was time to apply for either arts or science*.

*Clarity: While school is only compulsory until 9^th grade in China, if the student continues education into (what’s equivalent to high school), normally they would choose a path: liberal arts or science. Depending on what they choose, their studies would lean towards that subject more.

Seeing Xu Wang smiling, Wu Sheng’s heart relaxed, only to hear the English teacher’s firm roll call—

“Wu Sheng!”

Judging by the tone, it seemed he had called more than once.

Wu Sheng quickly stood up, meeting the teacher’s “come on” gaze.

Come on, what?

Class Monitor Wu looked bewildered.

Looking around, several students had already stood up, looking dejected and disheartened. Clearly, the teacher had asked a particularly challenging question, and those called upon had unfortunately been caught.

Most of the students were eagerly waiting to see what would happen, especially since the teacher had called on Wu Sheng, who was seen as a model student. If Wu Sheng were to fail, it would certainly upset the teacher’s expectations.

At the crucial moment, Qian Ai, sitting in the front row, quickly used a book to cover his face and turned around. With exaggerated lip movements and his chubby cheeks, he managed to convey a clear message. “Recite—the—text—”

Wu Sheng suddenly realized. The English homework assigned by the teacher the day before was to memorize that key text, which contained several grammatical points that were sure to be on the test. It was an easy way to score points.

Those standing had chosen not to take this easy opportunity.

Wu Sheng gathered his thoughts and concentrated, reciting the text smoothly and naturally with perfect pronunciation.

The students, who were looking forward to some drama, were disappointed. It was only fun if Wu Sheng couldn’t answer, but fluent responses were the norm for him.

After finishing the recitation, the teacher nodded in satisfaction, allowing all the standing students to finally sit down.

When Wu Sheng looked again for Xu Wang, he had already propped up his textbook and was seemingly taking a nap on his desk.

Wu Sheng wasn’t sure if Xu Wang was really sleeping or faking it. His mind was still on the moment Xu Wang laughed at the paper ball. If Xu Wang was really asleep, Wu Sheng hoped he would still receive paper balls in his dreams.

Sleeping in class and then rushing to the bathroom faster than anyone else, Wu Sheng couldn’t find Xu Wang when he followed him there.

Throughout the afternoon, Xu Wang didn’t give anyone the chance to express their “concern and condolences”.

Finally, when the evening self-study session ended and the class erupted in the noise of packing up, Xu Wang seemed to come alive. He quickly gathered his things, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and gave a crisp clean, “Bye.”

Wu Sheng was surprised. “Aren’t you going back to the dorm?”

“My dad worries, so he insists I go home.” Xu Wang shrugged, looking resigned.

“Oh.” After a long look, Wu Sheng felt like he had more to say but couldn’t organize his thoughts, finally managing a dry, “Be careful on the way.”

Xu Wang paused, then laughed. “If a robber meets me, they’ll go bankrupt. If it’s a kidnapper…” He considered it seriously with a cocky raise of his eyebrows. “They’ve got good taste; we could talk.”

Wu Sheng: “……”

He couldn’t remember how he got back to the dorm, and by the time he realized something wasn’t right, it was already 11 p.m.

The dorm lights were out, and everyone was working under their small desk lamps, except for the bed below his, which was conspicuously empty.

Home? 

With Xu Wang’s stubborn nature, he wouldn’t have gone to his father’s house if his mother hadn’t passed away. Now that he had gone, he was quickly sent back to school. Even if he was slow to catch on, he should have understood what was happening.

Besides, Xu Wang wasn’t slow at all.

He was more sensitive than anyone when it came to the warmth and coldness of human relationships.

A flash of lightning illuminated the dorm window, followed by the distant rumble of thunder. April rains were always plentiful.

Wu Sheng got out of bed and went to the corner of the hallway to call Xu Wang. The school didn’t allow phones, but the students always found a way.

The phone rang for a long time with no answer.

Wu Sheng called again.

On the third attempt, the call was finally picked up. Before Wu Sheng could speak, the voice on the other end complained to him, “What kind of class monitor are you? Calling a classmate in the middle of the night!”

The accusation was sincere, and the voice was hoarse and nasal, as if the person had just woken up.

Wu Sheng didn’t pretend to be ignorant. “What’s wrong with your voice?”

“Try being woken up when you’re sleeping soundly.” The voice yawned convincingly.

Wu Sheng narrowed his eyes. “Where are you?”

There was a pause on the other end. “At my dad’s.”

Rumble—

Thunder rumbled again, heard on both ends of the call.

“I’ll ask you again.” Wu Sheng’s voice turned cold. “Where are you?”

Silence followed.

“If you dare hang up, I’ll go to the teacher on duty right now and say a student is missing. We’ll have the whole dormitory looking for you.”

“Do you have to be so harsh?”

“I’m dealing with a cunning opponent.”

“Can’t you just leave me alone?”

“I can. You can change dormitories when you come back and find a good roommate who doesn’t disturb others’ sleep.”

“How am I disturbing you when I’m not even there?”

“The bottom bunk is drafty without you.”

“……”

Five minutes later, Wu Sheng got dressed and slipped out of the dorm, becoming a shadow in the rainy night and sneaking towards the academic building.

If someone had told him in junior high—

“Wu Sheng, after you go to high school, you will meet a particularly unreliable buddy. He seems possessed by the devil of impulsiveness, always ready to shout at any injustice he sees. He seeks trouble even in peaceful situations and doesn’t listen to advice. If you confront him, he must respond, and if you throw a paper ball at him, he will definitely throw a pen cap back at you. Despite all this, you still treasure this friend immensely. No one else can replace him. If you don’t see him for a day, you feel uneasy.”

He would have thought it a curse, and a heartless one at that, because each point was a sore spot.

But now, in his senior year, he had come to realize that nothing was “absolute” in this world.

He moved houses frequently in elementary school and never had long-term friends. In junior high, he was immersed in studies and didn’t make close friends. In high school, as the class monitor, he was seen by his classmates as a “mobile exercise database”. More approached him for problem-solving than casual chats. Even in the dorm, during playful antics, he was usually ignored. If they accidentally bumped into his bed, they’d feel sorry for disturbing his study.

Although he wasn’t particularly interested in childish antics, his participation was one thing; being included by others was another.

Xu Wang moved in a month later, in October of their first year of high school. Wu Sheng remembered it vividly. It was raining heavily, with water seeping through the window and covering the sill. No one in the dorm cared, except for Xu Wang, who wiped it up and checked the entire dorm. He asked Wu Sheng, “Do you have any extra cloth?”

Wu Sheng, who was listening to English at the time, removed his headphones and asked, “What?”

“Do you have any extra cloth?” Xu Wang repeated loudly, explaining, “To put on the sill to soak up water. Otherwise, it’ll spill everywhere.”

Wu Sheng shook his head in confusion.

Cleaning was almost a ghostly presence in their dorm—the cloth Xu Wang used was an old towel left by a classmate that didn’t have time to throw it away.

Xu Wang frowned and sighed in disappointment. “It’s a shame you have such a nice look but have no love for labor.”

Wu Sheng: “……”

Not just Wu Sheng, but the other roommates were displeased too. “What’s wrong with how we look?”

So, to prove their worth, the roommates cleaned the window sill and floor thoroughly and even reported the leaky windowsill to the dormitory supervisor the next day.

Wu Sheng was part of this labor force too.

This was Xu Wang’s first appearance. Their next heart-to-heart was on a weekend when only the two of them were in the dorm. Wu Sheng was solving problems on the upper bunk, and Xu Wang was reading on the lower bunk. In a warm atmosphere, Xu Wang suddenly kicked Wu Sheng’s bed. “You’ll become stupid if you keep solving problems like this.”

Wu Sheng, bored, put down his pen and asked, “Are you talking to me?”

Xu Wang sat up, as if he caught him in the act. “There are only two of us here, and you’re still asking me this question. If this isn’t being stupid, what is? Wake up, Class Monitor!”

“Fine,” Wu Sheng agreed for once. “I’ll stop studying. What should I do then?”

“Anything,” Xu Wang said earnestly. “Life should be rich and colorful.”

Wu Sheng thought seriously: “I learned piano and mathematics in elementary school, Go and ice skating in junior high. In high school, I had less time, so I tried self-teaching myself to paint but found I had no talent, so I switched to computers. I do read less—only one or two books a week. Looking at it, my life is indeed bland. Can you give me some specific suggestions on how to enrich it?”

Xu Wang: “…I’m going to stop being friends with you!”

Wu Sheng still remembered Xu Wang’s wide eyes and puffed cheeks when he said this, like a little tiger in a cat’s skin, cuter than the toughest math problem.

It was then that he realized they were already friends.

Third year, Class Seven.

Wu Sheng stood at the back door of the classroom, his hair wet from the rain and droplets sliding down his cheeks. Xu Wang, leaning on his desk, seemed to smile when he saw him, but it was too dark to see clearly.

“Didn’t you bring an umbrella?” he asked seriously.

Grinding his teeth, Wu Sheng walked in and sat next to Xu Wang. “I’ll give you another chance.”

Xu Wang sat up straight. “How will we get back to the dorm in this heavy rain without an umbrella?”

After looking at him for two seconds, Wu Sheng suddenly reached out and took Xu Wang’s phone from the desk.

Xu Wang was confused. “What are you doing?”

“Calling your mom,” Wu Sheng scrolled through the contacts, “to tell her you won’t be coming home tonight and are causing trouble in the classroom.”

“You’re crazy!” Xu Wang desperately tried to grab the phone. “My mom is dead, dead—”

His voice was hoarse, barely hiding the tears.

Wu Sheng hugged him tightly.

Xu Wang struggled with all his might but couldn’t break free. He never knew Wu Sheng was so strong.

The rain intensified, with thunder and rain blending into a torrential downpour. Xu Wang finally cried out loud, holding onto Wu Sheng, sobbing like a child who had been bullied.

“When they divorced… my mom told me… she took me from my dad…”

“Actually, my dad didn’t want me…”

“I wanted to stay in the dorm in my first year of high school… She didn’t allow it, and I argued with her…”

“She was already sick by then, but she didn’t tell me, and I was so angry at her…”

“I didn’t want to live with my dad… but I also didn’t dare to go home…”

“I always felt my mom was still at home, waiting to scold me for my bad grades. I was afraid that if I went back, the dream would end…”

“Wu Sheng, why do the bad people live well while the good ones suffer so much…”

Xu Wang vented all his sorrow, regret, and anger without reservation. Wu Sheng didn’t speak; he just gently stroked his head, quietly accompanying him.

The rain grew heavier and the thunder louder, which was unusual for April. It was almost like a stormy midsummer.

Xu Wang, exhausted from crying and completely hoarse, strangely felt much calmer inside. The sadness lingered, but it didn’t hurt so much that he felt like crying at the slightest thing.

Wu Sheng’s entire school uniform was wet. Xu Wang couldn’t distinguish between what was drenched by the rain and what was his own doing.

He cautiously looked up to find Wu Sheng also looking down at him. Or maybe, Xu Wang thought, he had been watching him all along, quiet and gentle, quite uncharacteristic of the Wu Sheng he knew.

The night was dark, without a trace of moonlight, yet Xu Wang swore he saw what he longed for in that gaze.

He felt as if possessed.

Enchanted, he moved closer.

Closer still, he could even make out his own increasingly clear reflection in Wu Sheng’s eyes.

Suddenly, those eyes blinked, and a surge of panic washed over everything.

Xu Wang, losing his nerve, impulsively kissed him!

But Wu Sheng reacted faster, instinctively pushing him away, using more force than intended in his panic.

“Bang—”

Xu Wang was pushed to the floor.

His back hit a slanted chair, and he landed hard on the ground, but he didn’t feel any pain. For the first half minute, he was dazed, his mind a blank slate.

Wu Sheng didn’t know what to do.

His heart pounded wildly, audible even through the rain.

He wanted to apologize but couldn’t speak; he wanted to help him up but dared not reach out.

He feared Xu Wang would ask why. This was the first time in his life that he was so afraid of being questioned!

Xu Wang gradually regained his senses, feeling the pain.

His back hurt, his ass hurt, his eyes hurt—everything was intensely painful, and his heart was even worse—a mix of pain and sorrow that was terribly suffocating.

He tried to take deep breaths.

Once, twice, thrice…

Finally, after an unknown number of attempts, he succeeded, like a person struggling ashore, gasping for air.

Wu Sheng was still stunned, which was even rarer than the gentle Wu Sheng.

Xu Wang leisurely observed him, then chuckled, leaning on a table and lazily reaching out, as if it were the most natural thing. “Stop feeling guilty¹ and help me up.”

Wu Sheng breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly stood up.

Xu Wang grasped his extended hand, which was cool and damp with sweat.

It was raining like crazy.

Walking in the corridor and watching raindrops splash against the glass, one might even feel splashed by the droplets.

Wu Sheng and Xu Wang walked one after the other in silence.

Since leaving the classroom, they hadn’t spoken a word.

The long corridor seemed endless. After a while, Wu Sheng began to worry, fearing Xu Wang was no longer behind him.

He stopped abruptly and turned around without warning.

Xu Wang, seemingly startled, quickly looked out the window, determined, resolute, unwavering, like the relentlessly flowing rain on the glass.

Wu Sheng caught his breath.

Even from the side, he could clearly see tears on Xu Wang’s face.

The previous sobbing tears were still on his own uniform. Wu Sheng was sure that Xu Wang hadn’t cried since they left the classroom.

Lowering his gaze, Wu Sheng pretended not to see and continued walking, but his heart was in complete turmoil.

The quietly crying Xu Wang was even more heart-wrenching than before.

But he dared not ask why.

Just like in the classroom, the “confession¹” Xu Wang half-jokingly mentioned.

What confession¹?

One vague, the other afraid to delve deeper, seemingly understanding it tacitly but also ambiguously¹.

¹Clarity: The word used is (忏悔) which means to confess (also means to repent). In this case, Xu Wang was casually making a joke with an underlying undertone (as in confessing his feelings) in order to absolve the awkward situation but also dropping a hint. Wu Sheng, not picking up on it (or rather, choosing not to), convinced himself it was about a feeling of penance.

Lightning streaked outside the window, so close it seemed to touch the glass, momentarily illuminating the corridor as if it were daylight.

Perhaps it was too close; the thunder boomed almost simultaneously, painfully loud.

Wu Sheng squinted in the bright light, and after the thunder passed, he thought it over and turned back, saying, “It’s too dangerous with frequent lightning. Maybe we should wait…”

He stopped mid-sentence.

Xu Wang was no longer behind him.

Only the empty corridor remained, deep and cold, as if leading to the end of darkness.

……

Xu Wang swore he had been following Wu Sheng closely.

But as they walked, the surroundings blurred, and the portraits of famous people on the walls began to distort in the lightning, like a shaky old TV signal, dazzling and headache-inducing.

He became scared.

Wu Sheng turned around at that moment, his mouth moving, seemingly saying something about the thunder… or something else.

He wanted to clarify, and feeling panicked, he yelled loudly, “I can’t hear you—”

Wu Sheng acted as if he hadn’t heard.

And his gaze didn’t meet his, as if… as if he couldn’t see him.

Another flash of lightning, and even Wu Sheng’s figure started to blur.

Xu Wang had seen countless horror movies, but none were a fraction as terrifying as this moment.

He desperately lunged towards Wu Sheng, thinking that if speaking and seeing didn’t work, he would physically hold onto him!

But in the end, he only hugged himself.

The rain stopped.

The world became clear again.

But it was no longer the world Xu Wang knew.

No corridor, no school, no Wu Sheng.

It was still night, but with a clear sky and scattered stars.

He stood at the entrance of a hospital, looking up in confusion. The words “Central Hospital” glowed red, like blood.

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The author has something to say:

Did anyone notice the cameo of Classmate Qian? Please raise your hand, hahaha.

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