Pei Jinrong’s body went stiff, and he smiled with a delayed, pursed expression, his heart filled with immense joy.
He picked up the medical book that Song Wenqing had placed on the ground, laid it on his lap, and took Song Wenqing’s hand with his other hand to head into the inn, saying, “Let us put the book away first before we stroll around.”
Song Wenqing gave a slight nod, listening intently to the youth’s continuous mumbling.
The Mid-Autumn Festival in Qingyu County was even more bustling than he had imagined; for a moment, Song Wenqing mistakenly thought he had arrived in Chang’an.
They did not have much silver left on them, with only seven taels remaining after careful calculations over the past few days. They did not dare to visit those excessively expensive restaurants, instead selecting a standard, average establishment. Business at the restaurant was quite good, and the two of them waited for a long time before the dishes were served.
Song Wenqing was a picky eater and did not touch a single bite of the carrots. Seeing this, Pei Jinrong merely smiled and transferred all the carrots from the plate into his own bowl.
Witnessing his action, Song Wenqing suddenly recalled how, during his childhood, his grandmother would always terrify him with a stern face, saying that if he did not eat carrots, he would not be able to see in the future. While his grandmother was still alive, he would accommodate her wishes and reluctantly eat a few bites. Later on, when there was no one left to look after him, he stopped caring about these things entirely.
Now, there was an additional person.
After they finished their meal, the sky had completely darkened. The stars dotted the night sky, twinkling continuously, much like the hearts of the two people that were drawing closer at this moment.
“Do you want to eat candied haws?” Song Wenqing bent down slightly and asked with a smile.
The youth’s eyes shone brightly as he nodded.
Just like that, each of them holding a stick of candied haws, they walked toward the lake. The autumn evening breeze swept past, infused with a chill, causing Song Wenqing to instinctively wrap his clothes tighter around his body.
“Ah Wen, I am so hot,” Pei Jinrong said.
Song Wenqing cast a somewhat strange look at the youth, who was not wearing very many clothes, and said, “Hot?”
“Hot, I forgot to take off my outer coat when we were at the inn,” Pei Jinrong said with a serious expression, and after a moment, added, “It will be cold on the lake later, so you should wear it.”
Song Wenqing put it on half-skeptically; the coat was still very warm, making it feel as though he were being embraced by Pei Jinrong.
Qingyu County was adjacent to the lake, with grey city walls stretching between the mountains and the waters, and there were many sounds of laughter and shouting along the shore. Different from the prosperity inside the city, the area outside the city walls was filled with the breath of daily life.
The boatman sat resting on the shore, and upon seeing the two of them, he hurriedly raised his voice to ask, “Young masters, are you planning to cross the river?”
“Yes, just to take a trip around it.” Remembering something, Song Wenqing turned his head, fearing that Pei Jinrong would be unable to board the boat while sitting in the wheelchair. Fortunately, the youth merely smiled, stood up, and placed the wheelchair aside properly.
The boatman paused slightly upon seeing this, and then said, “Then, young masters, we shall depart.”
Song Wenqing responded, but his eyes were filled with concern. Pei Jinrong was such a proud person; he was unwilling to walk with a limp even in the village, so he feared the youth felt even more self-conscious right now.
“Brother, do I look exceptionally ugly when I walk?” the youth asked nervously, lowering his eyes as his index finger rubbed continuously against his thumb joint.
Song Wenqing felt a pang of heartache, shaking his head as he said, “Not ugly.”
Hearing this, Pei Jinrong let out a breath, his voice trembling, “Will brother abandon me?”
Song Wenqing remained silent for a long moment, and only when the youth raised his head to look at him did he say, “I will not, but if you abandon me first, then I will not want you either.”
He thought back to a time long, long ago, and forcing a curve onto his lips, Song Wenqing said, “When I was a child, I fell seriously ill, and one day, my parents took me to an amusement park to play.” He let out a self-deprecating laugh, “I was exceptionally happy at the time, but I did not expect that they only did it to find a crowded place to abandon me.”
Song Wenqing raised his eyes, his tone devoid of any discernible emotion, “In the future, if you…”
Before he could finish speaking, he was tightly embraced by the youth.
“I will not, I will never abandon brother,” Pei Jinrong said hurriedly. Although he did not understand what the amusement park Song Wenqing spoke of was, his heart felt as painful as if it were being squeezed tightly by a hand.
It was only when a damp sensation came from his shoulder that Song Wenqing was slightly startled.
He was a child whom no one doted on; when he was sick during childhood, the family had no money and there were many children. The loss of one of him would not cause anything to happen, so when he was abandoned at the amusement park at five years old, he did not cry.
Later he met his grandmother, and the old lady spent her entire life’s savings to treat his illness and send him to school. When his grandmother passed away, Song Wenqing managed her funeral arrangements entirely on his own, and he did not cry either. One day, he suddenly realized that only he remained for the days ahead; on that day, he locked himself in his room without eating or drinking for three whole days, yet when he walked out the door, he was still that calm and collected Song Wenqing.
When he was twenty-four years old, his first patient’s condition deteriorated and they lost their life; he merely washed his face with cold water, and did not cry.
Song Wenqing felt as though he had lost the ability to cry.
However, the youth in his arms had burst into tears and was sobbing uncontrollably just from hearing a few words from him, as if the person who had experienced these events were the youth himself.
“In the future, I will treat you very, very well,” the youth said with a choked voice.
The two of them sat at the stern of the boat, where the temperature on the lake was terrifyingly low. However, the two people on the boat held each other tightly, and letting out a sigh, Song Wenqing thought to himself that he might truly have fallen in love with Pei Jinrong.
The boatman completed a loop and returned to the original mooring point. After Song Wenqing thanked him, he pulled Pei Jinrong to head ashore.
The youth gripped his hand tightly, unwilling to let go, remaining quiet and silent the whole way, yet the atmosphere was not awkward.
Upon returning to the city center, Qingyu County was still highly bustling.
Song Wenqing had been busy studying in the past, so he had never seen lion dances before and found them exceptionally fascinating. After browsing outside for a long time, his feet ached from walking, and he finally desired to return to the inn.
“A-Jin, let us go back to rest.”
Pei Jinrong nodded, the hand holding Song Wenqing’s tightening slightly.
Just as they were planning to leave, they unexpectedly ran into an old acquaintance.
“Release your filthy hand!” Cen Xi said with a stern, expressionless face, brushing off Lu Yue’s hand. He spoke with a relatively loud voice, drawing the side glances of the surrounding people.
Song Wenqing’s footsteps paused, and lowering his head, he smiled and whispered softly, “Let us watch the excitement.”
Pei Jinrong responded, a hint of obscurity flashing in his eyes as he looked at Lu Yue. This person seemed to be the one who had caused trouble at his and his brother’s wedding previously.
Lu Yue grabbed Cen Xi’s sleeve, his tone anxious as he said in a panic, “Cen Xi, you know that the only person I love is you.”
Cen Xi disliked having his family’s embarrassing affairs witnessed by others, yet Lu Yue was like a piece of regular, sticky taffy that could not be shaken off. He let out a mocking laugh, casting a cold glance at Lu Yue, “So your love consists of deceiving me on the Mid-Autumn Festival by claiming you need to catch up on schoolwork, only to seek pleasure in a brothel, is that it?”
Lu Yue choked on his words, and just as he was about to make an explanation, Cen Xi turned around and said, “What are you all standing around for? Next, hurry up and drag this person away for me.”
The moment his words fell, several bodyguards immediately emerged from the crowd.
Seeing this, Lu Yue knelt onto the ground with a thud, his face covered in tears, “Cen Xi, Cen Xi, I was wrong.” Remembering something, he then continued, “It was all him who seduced me; he was the one who took the initiative.”
Cen Xi stopped, lowering his head to look at Lu Yue. Lu Yue thought Cen Xi had changed his mind and was about to smile, only to hear Cen Xi say, “Filthy thing.”