SPDO Chapter 58.1

The final exams came just like that. Before entering the examination room, Qin Cheng touched his school tyrant boyfriend’s hand to soak up some of his immortal aura. However, after getting the test paper, he still felt a bit uncertain.

After all, during this period, he was busy with both the sports class and the regular class. He wasn’t really a good student to begin with, and if it weren’t for Jian Heng giving him a little nudge every day, Qin Cheng felt he would have fallen behind long ago.

Taking a deep breath, he first wrote ‘Qin Cheng’ neatly at the top of the paper, read the question, thought for a moment, and then started writing.

Compared to many other students, Qin Cheng’s biggest advantage was that while others might get nervous and perform poorly, he wouldn’t. He might feel nervous before the exam, but once he started answering the questions, that feeling would disappear.

If he knew the answer, he would write it down; if he didn’t, he wouldn’t. Knowledge was like dating——if the other person didn’t like you, no amount of kneeling and begging would help.

After class, Qin Cheng went out to use the restroom. Just as he was about to send a message to Jian Heng, his phone buzzed.

Dear Heng Heng: I’ll be waiting for you at the entrance of the examination room at noon.

Dear Cheng Cheng replied with a ‘Got it, muah’.

***

Two days passed in the blink of an eye. After finishing the last exam and handing in the paper, Qin Cheng felt a wave of relief.

The exams were over, so whatever happens, happens. Anyway, he would be transferring to the sports class next semester, so it wouldn’t affect the class ranking.

Jian Heng was waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs on the first floor. Qin Cheng jumped down five or six steps: “Hey!”

Jian Heng reacted quickly, instantly opening his arms and giving a warm hug, tightening his embrace before letting go: “Did you do well on the exam?”

“Not bad,” Qin Cheng said, looking around to make sure no one was watching, and squeezed Jian Heng’s hand again. “I answered everything I knew.”

“Shao Ze said the train is tonight,” Jian Heng said. “We’ll go buy groceries at the market later.”

“So urgent?” Qin Cheng walked out with him.

“Their school finished exams early. Cheng Bin flunked and got kicked out by his mom,” Jian Heng chuckled. “She told him to find a place to stay on his own and come back after the New Year.”

“Hey, that’s not right. The landlord’s family also has no surplus grain[mfn]地主家也沒餘糧 (dì zhǔ jiā yě méi yú liáng): a simple Chinese expression used to describe a situation where even wealthy people have no surplus or excessive resources. This phrase is often used to depict difficult economic circumstances or a scarcity of food supplies. From the movie “Party A and Party B“.[/mfn],” Qin Cheng pretended to take out his phone. “As a brother, I’ll sign him up for a tour group, let him see the famous mountains, rivers, lakes and seas of the motherland, and not bother us.”

“Mm,” Jian Heng said, “remember to make him pay.”

While laughing, Qin Cheng sent a voice message to Cheng Bin: “I discussed with Heng’er and decided to book you a tour package. If you haven’t boarded the train yet, hurry up and pack your things and refund the ticket. Bring Ze’er along and head towards the mountains and the sea!”

The two of them had just left the school gate when Cheng Bin replied. The background noise was very chaotic, with the sound of a bustling train station urging passengers to board the train.

“With that money, wouldn’t it be better to book a small hotel in Jinhua and stay warm and cozy? What about basic human decency?”

“Ask Heng’er if our ten-plus years of brotherhood have been shattered by his love.”

After hearing this, Qin Cheng tapped Jian Heng’s back while sitting in the back seat: “Asking you, has it been shattered?”

Saying this, he pressed the recording button and held the phone to his mouth.

Jian Heng lowered his head and said: “Not a trace left. Refund the ticket.”

Qin Cheng burst into laughter.

***

The vegetable-selling DaMas all know Jian Heng. ‘The boyfriend who always accompanies Xiao Cheng to buy vegetables’ is the title they unanimously agree on.

“Young man, don’t be shy, just admit it,” the DaMa was particularly perceptive. “We won’t tell your parents, no need to hide from us. You’re both the main vegetable buyers, how could we gossip about you? That would be like going against little gods of wealth!”

“You’re right,” Qin Cheng and his boyfriend were still in the underground relationship phase for the time being. It wasn’t that he was afraid his mom wouldn’t accept it; after all, his mom and dad’s generation was already shocked by AB relationships. It was just that he hadn’t figured out how to explain it yet. Moreover, the two of them had been stuck together every day before they started dating, and now they were still glued together. His mom never suspected or questioned anything. Qin Cheng, being carefree, didn’t think to make this public either. “Buy a few tomatoes, the green beans are gone?”

“Yes, yes, yes, they’re in the box. Wait, let me get them for you,” the DaMa magically pulled out a foam box from behind the stall. “They’re all new, imported green beans! Really delicious!”

“You really are something, even got imported green beans,” Jian Heng was picking through them, while Qin Cheng leaned against the side and chatted casually with the DaMa. “You really have wide connections.”

“Your DaMa here doesn’t have many skills, but in this life, I do have wide connections!”

Qin Cheng gave a thumbs-up.

…..

“If you buy a few more things, I could even find out which kindergarten class his grandson is in and whether his teacher is A or O.” On the way back, Qin Cheng’s hands were full of stuff.

Four Alphas, two just finished their exams, two just came back from a long journey, had to be prepared for the amount of seven or eight people.

“Really impressive,” Jian Heng said.

“Take it easy,” Qin Cheng nudges his back with the tip of his nose. “I’ve noticed you’ve been closing your eyes and blowing me off lately. Heng Heng, do you have something on your mind?”

“Want to fuck you.” Student Heng Heng’s thoughts were never hidden.

“Hey,” Qin Cheng couldn’t help but sigh at this point. While others were on winter break, their physical education class didn’t have a break. They could only rest for five days before rolling back to school to train from dawn till dusk. Out of those five days, Shao Ze and Cheng Bin would take up two. “Why are we so miserable? The adult world really doesn’t have the word ‘easy’ in it. Sigh, so bitter.”

“College will be easier,” Jian Heng comforted him, “Just one and a half more years.”

“Right,” Qin Cheng took a deep breath, “After one and a half years, it will be fine, I can take off your white coat[mfn]白大褂 (bái dà guà): doctor’s white coat; (synecdochically) doctor or nurse. T/N: I’m not quite sure what QC mean by this. My guess is this means something like virginity.[/mfn]!”

Although the focus was a bit off, at least the atmosphere had brightened up. Qin Cheng happily helped him cook.

“There’s only this much sesame oil left,” Qin Cheng shook the bottle in front of him, “I’ll go get some from next door.”

“Go ahead, and bring back a green onion,” Jian Heng continued chopping, slicing the cucumber into thin, even strips, “and some MSG.”

“Got it,” Qin Cheng leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, picked up a cucumber slice and popped it into his mouth. “Even if we dropped out of school now, we could still open a restaurant and get by.”

“Me as the head chef?” Jian Heng opened his mouth with a smile.

Qin Cheng quickly picked up another shred and put it in his mouth, then lightly tapped his chin as he let go, “Yeah, the restaurant’s name would be ‘Two or Three Things the Chef and the Sous Chef Have to Say’. Tsk, tsk, tsk, I’m really becoming less and less pure.”

***

Song Yingmei was watching TV on her phone. Seeing that her son finally remembered to come home, she pointed to the kitchen as usual, “Staying at Xiao Heng’s house again today? Auntie Tan sent some oranges, take them over and eat together.”

“Mm,” Qin Cheng leaned over, wrapping his arms around her neck from behind the sofa, and acted spoiled. “What are you watching, Mom?”

“Young people in love,” Song Yingmei smiled a bit shyly. “You boys probably wouldn’t like it.”

“Why not?” Qin Cheng felt something was off with his mom lately; she seemed to be getting younger and more cheerful by the day. Although this was definitely related to her improving health, her constant good mood during the time he was too busy training to care about anything else must mean something had happened. “I want to watch it too.”

“It’s this kind of show, about things that happened in your high school days.” Song Yingmei moved her phone closer to him, and the smile on her face made Qin Cheng squint his eyes.

“It’s this kind, about things that happened in your high school days,” Song Yingmei moved her phone closer to him, her smile making Qin Cheng squint his eyes.

Something’s not right.

Qin Cheng casually asked, “Did Auntie Tan recommend it to you?”

“No,” Song Yingmei, having no guard up with her son, casually replied, “It’s the new neighbor upstairs. I met them when I went downstairs to take out the trash last month. They’re quite nice.”

“You think everyone is nice,” Qin Cheng frowned. He actually didn’t know about the new neighbor who moved upstairs. “Next time there’s a lot of trash, I’ll take it out. It’s quite heavy. What if you can’t handle it and take a fall?”

“I’m not that weak,” Song Yingmei’s face turned slightly red, which was rare. “It’s good to go out and walk around, get some exercise.”

“When it gets warmer, I’ll accompany you to exercise,” Qin Cheng said. “Going out in this cold is just suffering. You’re the little princess of our family; you can just stay in the castle during winter.”

“I’m over forty, what little princess,” Song Yingmei playfully glared at her son, then couldn’t help but laugh. “Fine, I’ll listen to you. Is Xiao Heng missing something for cooking? Hurry and get it.”

“Oh my god, I completely forgot!” Qin Cheng quickly got up and ran to the kitchen. After rummaging around, he stuffed a few oranges into his pocket and left. Before closing the door, he poked his head out, not quite reassured, and shouted, “Mom, don’t go out alone. It’s freezing outside, cold enough to freeze you to death in five minutes.”

“I know, go ahead,” Song Yingmei said, smiling as she urged him.

Qin Cheng closed the door and ran to the opposite side.

“I think the new person upstairs is definitely not a good person,” Qin Cheng said, frowning as he stirred the potatoes and green beans in the pot. “There’s definitely something wrong. I need to find time to go up and have a look.”

“Go ahead,” Jian Heng added some water to the pot. “Otherwise, it’s not safe.”

“Mm,” Qin Cheng replied.

***

Cheng Bin and Shao Ze didn’t arrive until around seven in the evening. The two of them clearly couldn’t withstand the biting cold of Jinhua’s old north wind, their faces looking weather-beaten and worn. Cheng Bin’s white hair was a mess, and as soon as Qin Cheng opened the door, they rushed in.

“My god, what happened to you two? How come you both look like frozen like popsicles from Jinhua?” Cheng Bin only wore a thin cotton-padded jacket, and when Qin Cheng looked down, he saw that he was actually wearing a pair of tourist sandals.

“You came in sandals? You’re a real warrior,” Qin Cheng then glanced at Shao Ze. Sure enough, he was wearing even lighter than Cheng Bin, but he was stubborn and wouldn’t say anything. Qin Cheng repeated to Shao Ze, “You too.”

Shao Ze waved his hand: “Just let us warm up a bit, our lips are frozen and we can barely speak.”

[dropdown title=”List of Idiom in Chapter 58.1″]
裝模作樣 (zhuāng mó zuò yàng): to put on an act (idiom); to show affectation; to indulge in histrionics; to behave in an affected way; Refers to deliberately contrived, pretentious.

名山大川 (Míng shān dà chuān): famous mountains and great rivers; Generally refers to famous high mountains and long-flowing rivers.

驚世駭俗 (jīng shì hài sú): (literary) extremely shocking; universally shocking; to offend the whole of society; astound the world; shock the public; sensational; startling; scandalize; earthshattering; worldshaking; refers to a person who shocks others with his or her unusual thoughts, words, and deeds.

長途跋涉 (cháng tú bá shè): to make a long trek; arduous journey; long and difficult trek; make a long, arduous journey/march; trek a long way; trudge a long distance; to travel a over mountains and across rivers. It is used to describe a long journey and the hardship of the journey.

起早貪黑 (qǐ zǎo tān hēi): to work from dawn to dusk; to be industrious, rising early and going to bed late; start early and finish late; work tirelessly; burn the candle at both ends; toil day and night; to get up early and go to bed late. It is used to describe hard work.

東倒西歪 (dōng dǎo xī wāi): to lean unsteadily from side to side (idiom); to sway; (of buildings etc) to lean at a crazy angle; unsteady; dilapidated; rickety; walking unsteadily and unable to control one’s body, it also describes an object that is tilted incorrectly.
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