When Grandpa and Grandma got up in the morning to practice Baduanjin, Fang Chi woke up too, but didn’t move. It was warm under the blanket, and he didn’t want to get out.
He turned over, pulling the blanket over his head, planning to doze a bit longer.
But as the blanket covered him, he caught a faint scent of coconut milk.
Sun Wenqu?
Fang Chi opened his eyes and groggily looked at the blanket.
Gray and blue stripes.
That’s right, this was Sun Wenqu’s blanket.
He sat up abruptly. The sofa was too narrow, his hand missed its support, and he fell straight to the floor.
He jumped up and shook out the blanket.
Well, that woke him up completely.
How did Sun Wenqu’s blanket end up on him?
Fang Chi glanced upstairs, then ran to the backyard and stood behind his grandparents, moving his arms and legs along with them.
“Grandpa,” he said quietly, “where did my blanket come from?”
“No idea,” Grandpa turned to look at him. “Why were you sleeping on the sofa?”
“Because your snoring was too impressive,” Grandma said.
“Had a bit to drink,” Grandpa chuckled.
After chatting briefly, Fang Chi ran back inside, folded Sun Wenqu’s blanket, and carried it upstairs.
Sun Wenqu probably only had that one blanket. If he gave it away, then he must’ve gone without it. Who knows when he brought it down or whether he slept at all.
This time Fang Chi didn’t care whether he was working or not, he knocked loudly on the door several times.
“Coming,” Sun Wenqu’s voice came from inside.
“Hurry up,” Fang Chi knocked again, lowering his voice. “What’s wrong with you?”
The door opened. Sun Wenqu was in pajamas. “What do you mean?”
“You didn’t sleep again?” Fang Chi walked in and tossed the blanket onto the bed. The teapot had already taken shape, faint lines etched on it, couldn’t tell what they were yet, but it looked beautiful. He frowned. “You stayed up all night, didn’t you?”
“I slept too long yesterday afternoon, couldn’t sleep at night,” Sun Wenqu smiled. “I’m not sleepy now either.”
Fang Chi looked at him, his complexion seemed fine, no visible bloodshot eyes. He didn’t say more, just reached out and pinched the ears of Chief Huang, who was squatting on the table.
Chief Huang slapped his hand away and jumped back onto the bed.
“How did you know I slept in the living room?” Fang Chi asked.
“I went to the bathroom,” Sun Wenqu said. “Passed by the living room and nearly got scared, you were sleeping like a mess.”
“…Was I?” Fang Chi scratched his head. “I thought I slept pretty well.”
“That’s what you think,” Sun Wenqu smiled. “So I brought the blanket down. It felt colder in the living room.”
“Thanks,” Fang Chi said.
“No need,” Sun Wenqu yawned. “Make me a bowl of noodles.”
“Mm,” Fang Chi nodded, then added, “We’re visiting relatives for New Year today. No one will be home at noon… if you want something to eat, I can prepare it for you first. I’ll be back in the afternoon.”
“No need,” Sun Wenqu said. “I’m going to the county today. Grandpa said the bus is running again.”
“The county?” Fang Chi froze, surprised. “There are only two buses today, one in the morning, one in the afternoon. Are you coming back in the afternoon?”
“No, I’ll come back tomorrow,” Sun Wenqu patted his shoulder. “Your Uncle Liangzi is here, staying in the county. I’ll hang out with him today and come back together tomorrow.”
“What?” Fang Chi was completely stunned.
“You can sleep in my room tonight, no need to sleep on the sofa,” Sun Wenqu said.
“You’re not coming back tonight?” Fang Chi still hadn’t processed it.
“Yeah,” Sun Wenqu nodded, looking at him. “What’s wrong?”
“I…” Fang Chi couldn’t quite describe the feeling, suddenly a bit disappointed. He sat down at the table, casually spinning a pen in his hand. “Nothing.”
“Don’t feel like visiting relatives is boring?” Sun Wenqu smiled, reaching out to ruffle his hair.
“Yeah, it’s pretty dull. I don’t really know those relatives, nothing to talk about,” Fang Chi sighed softly.
“You’ll get red envelopes,” Sun Wenqu ruffled his hair again.
“How big can those be? Not tempting,” Fang Chi smiled. “Even combined, they won’t match the one you gave me… how much was yours?”
“You haven’t counted yet?” Sun Wenqu leaned against the table.
“No, felt awkward counting it. Just felt like a lot,” Fang Chi said, touching his coat pocket.
“You’re still carrying it?” Sun Wenqu laughed.
“Yeah, haven’t changed clothes.”
“It’s not that much, 2666,” Sun Wenqu said. “I exchanged it at the bank in town. Took forever, and the service was terrible.”
“…That’s a lot, isn’t it? Is this how rich kids play?” Fang Chi said.
“Who told you that? Rich kids don’t give less than 5000,” Sun Wenqu tapped the table. Chief Huang jumped back onto it, and he picked it up. “It’s just for good luck.”
“Oh.” Fang Chi nodded.
They fell silent again. Fang Chi’s mood wasn’t great. Visiting relatives was already boring, and now Sun Wenqu was going to the county and wouldn’t be back until tomorrow.
Annoying.
“Hey,” Sun Wenqu nudged the chair leg. “I’m hungry.”
“Huh?” Fang Chi looked up. “Oh.”
He stood and went to the kitchen to cook noodles.
Only when he started boiling water did he realize, Ma Liang was coming?
“Yeah, he came once before and really liked it here,” Sun Wenqu said while eating.
“What’s there to like in this cold weather?” Fang Chi couldn’t understand.
“You don’t get it. The county and town feel more festive than the city. You can set off firecrackers, it’s fun,” Sun Wenqu said. “They’re not going back to their parents this year, so they’ve got nothing to do.”
“…How many days is he staying?” Fang Chi asked.
“Not sure, maybe one or two days. We’ve got things to discuss. Anyway, he’s driving, can go back and forth from the county,” Sun Wenqu glanced at him. “You’re not eating?”
“I am.” Fang Chi lowered his head and picked at his noodles.
“When are you going back to school? You could hitch a ride with him, no need to squeeze in with others,” Sun Wenqu added.
“…No need,” Fang Chi said. “I’ll go back on the sixth.”
“Mm.”
After eating, they helped Grandpa and Grandma sort out the New Year gifts to bring along. By the time they were done, the rest of the family had arrived.
Visiting relatives mostly meant seeing Grandpa’s older siblings. Technically, the elders didn’t need to go out, the younger ones could visit them, but Grandpa and Grandma treated it like traveling. At their age, every meeting mattered, so they went every year to reminisce about childhood memories. They figured they’d stay home only when they could no longer get around.
Luckily, everyone lived nearby. Fang Chi borrowed a car from Uncle Zhang, just a short, bumpy drive would get them there.
“There are fewer buses after the New Year, so it will be crowded. Be careful,” Grandma instructed Sun Wenqu in the backyard. “Also, the bus stop isn’t in the usual spot. You have to walk a bit further out, and it’s not easy to get there. How should I put it… it’s…”
“I’ll take him there,” Fang Chi said as he walked over.
“He won’t be leaving for a while,” Grandma said. “Why don’t you take him over now to get some fresh air?”
“You guys go ahead first. Let my dad and second uncle drive. I’ll go by myself after I finish sending off Shuiqu. I’ll just borrow a motorcycle and go,” Fang Chi said decisively.
“Alright, whatever you want,” Grandma patted him and walked into the house. “You used to refuse to move an inch when I asked you to take Fang Hui home, but now you’re quite eager.”
“Fang Hui is nothing.” Fang Chi clicked his tongue.
“Oh, you child,” Grandma stepped back and slapped him on the back again, “He’ll start fighting if he hears this.”
“He can’t beat me anyway,” Fang Chi said. “I can easily swing a 309b at him with one hand.”
“So annoying!” Grandma smacked him again.
When there are a lot of people in the house, going out the door becomes especially chaotic. One person shouts something, another yells something else, none of it with any focus. Dad and Second Uncle broke through the crowd and first put all the things into the car, then pushed Grandpa and Grandma into the car.
“Alright, alright, get in the car, get in the car!” Dad shouted.
Second Uncle had brought a car over, and together with the one Uncle Zhang lent, there were two cars in total. Which car to get into, everyone shouted about it for half a day. In the end Hu Ying and Fang Hui got into the same car. Very displeased, she shouted, “I want to switch cars! I want to go to the car with Grandpa from my mom’s side!”
“Go, go, go, go drive!” Fang Yun pulled her along. “If you keep switching back and forth we won’t go at all!”
The cars drove off. Fang Chi stood in the yard and felt that things had finally quieted down. This whole round of commotion had taken an hour; even Xiaozi had been scared off by the noise and no one knew where he’d hidden.
“Sun Wenqu!” Fang Chi shouted from the yard, not knowing whether Sun Wenqu was upstairs or hiding out in the back yard.
“Here!” Sun Wenqu’s voice came from the back yard, accompanied by Xiaozi barking.
Fang Chi turned and went to the back yard. Sun Wenqu was playing with Xiaozi.
“I thought it’d still take a while,” Fang Chi took out his phone and checked the time. “After all that fuss there’s no need to wait anymore. Go pack up a bit, you can pretty much head out.”
“Pack what?” Sun Wenqu looked at him.
“Your stuff. Aren’t you going to the county town? Not even bringing a bag or something?” Fang Chi said.
“I’ll just take a pair of underwear and stuff it in my pocket and go,” Sun Wenqu said. “What else is there to bring? I’m not going for that long.”
“Oh.” Fang Chi answered.
For some reason, that sentence from Sun Wenqu suddenly made his mood a lot better.
“How about you come to the county town with me for fun?” Sun Wenqu suddenly said with a smile. “Why do I feel like you’ve been unhappy all morning because I’m sneaking out to play and not taking you along?”
“Have I?” Fang Chi asked.
“You have,” Sun Wenqu leaned closer and looked at his face. “It’s written right there. Going to the county town today, and you didn’t even say it ahead of time yesterday.”
Fang Chi laughed. “Exactly. Why didn’t you say it yesterday.”
“I really forgot. I’m just like that, once I start working, other things I just can’t remember clearly,” Sun Wenqu said with a smile.
“You’re not bringing Chief Huang, right?” Fang Chi asked.
“No. Tonight you spend some time bonding with it. Otherwise when you go back I’m afraid it won’t follow you,” Sun Wenqu said.
“As if it has a choice whether to follow or not. I’ll just stuff it in the cat carrier and it’ll go obediently with me,” Fang Chi said indifferently. “I’ve given up trying to bond with it.”
“You’re going back to school on the sixth, right?” Sun Wenqu bent down and flicked Xiaozi’s head with his finger. “I thought you could stay until after the Lantern Festival.”
“We’ve got extra classes. It’s already good enough that they let us have the thirtieth off and go back on the first,” Fang Chi sighed.
“When you go back, put some effort into it. One way or another it’s just this one chop of the blade, wash your neck properly and once it’s cut you’ll feel better,” Sun Wenqu said.
“What kind of saying is that,” Fang Chi laughed.
Sun Wenqu didn’t really have anything to pack. He really did just take a pair of underwear, sealed it in a bag, stuffed it into his pocket, and headed out.
Fang Chi walked slowly toward the village entrance with him, the two of them bringing Xiaozi along.
The snow had stopped today and the sun had come out, though the wind was still a bit strong.
The village was quite lively. At the entrance there were still kids setting off firecrackers; each explosion was followed by a burst of excited shouting.
“You were like that when you were little too, right?” Sun Wenqu looked at those kids.
“More or less,” Fang Chi sniffed. “But I liked going up the mountain more. Even when it snowed my grandpa would take me up the mountain to see the snowy scenery.”
“Was it nice?” Sun Wenqu turned to look at the distant mountains.
“No. You’d fall half to death,” Fang Chi said.
Today’s bus wasn’t the usual one. They had to follow the small path at the village entrance and walk a bit farther to a fork in the road to catch a passing bus from another town.
Fang Chi felt the road was pretty long, but after chatting for only a few sentences they were already there.
“Oh no.” Sun Wenqu suddenly raised a hand to cover his neck.
“What’s wrong?” Fang Chi froze.
“I didn’t wear my scarf. No wonder it feels like I’m bare,” Sun Wenqu said. “Is there still time to go back and get it?”
“No time,” Fang Chi sighed. He pulled off his own scarf and wrapped it around Sun Wenqu’s neck. “Use mine. My grandma crocheted it by hand, it’s pretty warm.”
“Mm.” Sun Wenqu adjusted the scarf.
They hadn’t stood by the roadside for more than a few minutes when the bus drove over from the other side of the road.
Fang Chi waved his hand to stop it. He turned to look at Sun Wenqu, wanting to say something, but couldn’t think of anything to say. So he only said, “Get on. It’s ten yuan to the county town, they raised the price for the New Year.”
“Mm.” Sun Wenqu smiled. As he was about to get on the bus, he suddenly reached back and flicked Fang Chi on the face. “Hurry back. It’s freezing.”
“I still have to go make New Year visits,” Fang Chi quickly raised his hand and flicked the back of his hand as well.
“Hey.” Sun Wenqu pulled his hand back and rubbed the back of it. “Do you have any sense of limits?”
“No,” Fang Chi stepped back two steps. “Get on the bus.”
By the time the bus rattled into the county town, Ma Liang and his wife’s car was already parked outside the county bus station. Sun Wenqu saw it as soon as he got off.
“Handsome guy, are y– you going to, to that… wh-what… ah forget it, handsome guy wa— want a car…” Ma Liang came over and started talking, but before he could finish clearly, Hu Yuanyuan interrupted him.
“Big brother, where are you going? Want to charter a ride? See if we can take you along the way, cheaper than those passenger-soliciting cars,” Hu Yuanyuan rattled off in one breath.
Ma Liang gave her a thumbs-up.
“Have you two already picked up a fare?” Sun Wenqu laughed.
“We wanted to, but weren’t we waiting for you,” Hu Yuanyuan slapped the little van. “With this car parked here, more than a dozen people asked in half an hour. You’re practically ruining our business.”
The county town was much livelier than the town. Even though it was already past lunch time, they easily found a restaurant that looked pretty decent.
“I thought spending New Year here you’d gain a bit of weight,” Hu Yuanyuan tapped quickly on her phone while glancing at Sun Wenqu. “But you’re still like this. That gaunt face with a bit of fatigue, handsome for miles even in the wind. Didn’t sleep again last night, huh?”
“Mm.” Sun Wenqu laughed for a long time.
“That job isn’t urgent. Don’t push yourself so hard. Put on some weight. You ate so well during New Year and still didn’t gain anything,” Hu Yuanyuan sighed.
“Af-after a wh-while you’ll probably see re-results. Fattening someone up has a cy-cycle,” Ma Liang said.
“Looks like your cycle’s arrived,” Sun Wenqu patted Ma Liang’s belly.
“Yes, ar-arrived. Nine and a half mo-months already,” Hu Yuanyuan nodded. “Even hiring maternity helpers is hard now. I’m worried about it.”
Hu Yuanyuan ordered a few dishes and a bottle of liquor, then went back to fiddling with her phone. “You two chat. Drink as much as you like, I’ll drive later. I ran into a client with comprehension problems. We’ve been talking twenty minutes and still can’t get on the same wavelength.”
Sun Wenqu ladled some old duck soup into her bowl…
“I thought you’d br–bring your son along,” Ma Liang said while pouring him a drink.
“He went visiting relatives with his family,” Sun Wenqu smiled. “You’re quite concerned.”
“Just con-concerned a bit,” Ma Liang said. “Mainly you’re not ve-very reassuring.”
“Anything going on lately?” Sun Wenqu asked.
“No,” Ma Liang clinked his cup against his. “Sun Yao came to see me once, asking wh-where you were. I said you were sl-sleeping in the sewer.”
Sun Wenqu laughed and took a sip of wine. “Some friend you are. She didn’t curse you out?”
“No. She’s ve-very gra-gracious. Never curses people, just lec-lectures,” Ma Liang said. “She lectured me un-until I fe-fell asleep, then left.”
“You’ve gotten bold now,” Sun Wenqu laughed for quite a while. “You give her so little face. When the day comes she takes the helm for my dad, she’ll definitely take your shabby little studio down first. She’ll squeeze you to death.”
“Not af-afraid,” Ma Liang pointed at him. “I’ve got you.”
Sun Wenqu didn’t say anything, just looked at him.
“If you’d be willing t— to join me,” Ma Liang took a bite of food, “not just Sun, Sun Yao, even the old man I wouldn’t fe-fear.”
“I only agreed to help you with that set of teapots,” Sun Wenqu reminded him.
“Then go sl-sleep in the sewer,” Ma Liang said.
Sun Wenqu laughed and said in a pinched voice, “So annoying.”
“D– don’t do that,” Ma Liang touched his hand. “My wi-wife’s here.”
Sun Wenqu choked, turned his head, and laughed while coughing for quite a while.
“You don’t have to be so gentle with him,” Hu Yuanyuan said to Ma Liang. “For someone like him who won’t respond to soft or hard tactics, just leave him alone. When he can’t get by anymore, or when the two of us can’t get by, then he’ll come.”
“Do I really ignore both soft and hard tactics?” Sun Wenqu laughed.
“You only eat what you want to eat,” Hu Yuanyuan put a rib into his bowl. “Eat. It’s New Year, don’t keep letting Liangzi drag you into these boring topics.”
When he was hanging out with Ma Liang and his wife, Sun Wenqu felt quite relaxed, even if the future ahead was a complete blur.
After all, he’d never seen it clearly anyway.
Being with Fang Chi was also relaxing, but it wasn’t quite the same kind.
Ma Liang knew everything about him and understood his thoughts very well. It made him feel at ease, not mentally tired. But when Fang Chi, who didn’t understand him, or rather didn’t understand him yet was beside him, he felt quite steady. He could even sleep more deeply than usual.
Thinking about it, that feeling was pretty good.
It was just that Fang Chi had begun to change a little, and he didn’t know whether that change was good or bad.
They had started lunch late to begin with, and between eating and chatting, before they knew it dusk had already fallen. Ma Liang glanced at his phone. “D*mn, we can go straight into din-dinner.”
“Then just order another table of dinner,” Hu Yuanyuan said.
“Don’t. Change places,” Sun Wenqu smiled. “Change the taste a bit.”
“Alright.” Ma Liang paid the bill and stood up.
Hu Yuanyuan wanted barbecue. The three of them drove around the streets without a goal, circling what felt like half the county town and still not finding a barbecue restaurant.
“Hey, why didn’t you drive that car?” Sun Wenqu curled up in the back seat. “This cr*ppy car doesn’t even have heat, I’m freezing.”
“Gi-give him one.” Ma Liang, sitting in the passenger seat, took a heat pack from Hu Yuanyuan’s lap and passed it back to him.
“So small.” Sun Wenqu took it and pressed it to his face and ears for a while.
The heat pack was warm enough. When it was pressed to his ears, he had the illusion of Fang Chi’s hands covering them.
“Why don’t you call your big nephew and ask,” Hu Yuanyuan tilted her head. “Isn’t he a local? He should know.”
“Mm.” Sun Wenqu took out his phone.
“He’s been waiting for th-that line,” Ma Liang said.
“Then keep driving around.” Sun Wenqu put the phone back into his pocket.
Ma Liang laughed. Just as he was laughing, Sun Wenqu’s phone rang in his pocket.
Sun Wenqu took it out and glanced at the caller ID: Dear Son.
“Hello?” he answered.
“Have you started eating yet?” Fang Chi’s speech was a bit muffled, like he had food in his mouth.
“Not yet, haven’t found a place,” Sun Wenqu looked out the window. “You’re back?”
“Mm, just got back,” Fang Chi said.
“Have you eaten?” Sun Wenqu asked again.
“No,” Fang Chi smacked his lips. “Chocolate peanut paste.”
“…What do you mean by that?” Sun Wenqu said.
“Making you jealous,” Fang Chi laughed.
“You’re getting bold, huh,” Sun Wenqu clicked his tongue.
“Grandpa roasted sesame seeds. Tomorrow I’ll make you some sesame soup, chocolate makes people fat,” Fang Chi said.
“Then you’re still eating it?” Sun Wenqu said.
“With the amount of exercise a wild dog like me gets, it’s not something a snake like you can compare to,” Fang Chi said. “I always thought you’d hibernate once winter came.”
Sun Wenqu laughed. “Wild dog, let me ask you something.”
“Go ahead.” From the sound of it Fang Chi took another sip of chocolate, making loud slurping noises.
“Where in your county town is there barbecue?” Sun Wenqu looked out the window. “I’ve even seen big-plate chicken, but not barbecue.”
“There’s one by the bus station,” Fang Chi said. “Something ‘Jin-something’ or ‘Han-something’ barbecue city.”
“Bus station? The place you guys waited for me, that’s the bus station, right?” Sun Wenqu asked Hu Yuanyuan.
“Yes,” Ma Liang slapped his leg. “All that circling for nothing.”
“You know the way?” Fang Chi asked.
“Yeah. Your Uncle Liangzi is a human GPS,” Sun Wenqu said with a smile.
“Then…” Fang Chi paused. “Then go eat.”
“We haven’t reached the place yet.” Sun Wenqu held the heat pack.
“Oh.” Fang Chi answered. On the other side Grandma’s voice could be heard. “I’m going to eat.”
“Go eat.” Sun Wenqu said.
“You… you and Ma Liangzi… Uncle, when will you come back tomorrow?” Fang Chi asked. “Grandma just said you’re coming back at noon to eat?”
“Mm. Your Uncle Liangzi especially wants to eat the food your grandpa cooks. I’ve praised it to him several times,” Sun Wenqu said with a smile.
“Then…” Fang Chi paused again. “Then…”
“Mm?” Sun Wenqu raised his eyes and saw Ma Liang had turned his head and was looking at him.
“Do you know the road? Do you want me to come pick you up?” Fang Chi said.
“I know it,” Sun Wenqu laughed as soon as he heard that. “It’s only a few steps, how could I not know?”
“Oh.” Fang Chi didn’t say anything more.
“Then you come pick us up. When we’re almost there I’ll call you,” Sun Wenqu said.
“Okay,” Fang Chi smiled. “Then I’ll go eat.”
“Mm.” Sun Wenqu hung up and looked at Ma Liang. “What do you want to say?”
“He’s in hi-high school,” Ma Liang said.
“I know,” Sun Wenqu put the phone back into his pocket. “He goes back to school on the sixth.”
