FQ chapter 66

Fan Qing had brought Luan Ye a set of dark blue T-shirt and jeans, which fit him quite well. This wasn’t like Yunnan—by now the sky was completely dark. The two of them didn’t go far, just slipped into a nearby mall and picked a Chaoshan hotpot place at random.

It was a Saturday night, so the restaurant was fairly busy. Luckily, the peak dinner rush had passed and they didn’t need to wait. They chose a table by the window. At this point, Luan Ye was genuinely starving, eating with single-minded focus.

Fan Qing quietly kept dipping food into the pot for him while eating as well. Between the two of them, they polished off almost enough for four people before finally putting their chopsticks down.

“Feels like I’ve saved up all my meals from the past few days just to eat them in one go.” Luan Ye drank some tea to help it go down. “I don’t think I can stand up.”

“Walk it off later, help the digestion,” Fan Qing said with a laugh.

“And buy a couple pairs of underwear downstairs while we’re at it,” Luan Ye added. “Can’t wear today’s anymore anyway.”

Fan Qing darted his eyes around the room quickly. No one had overheard. He let out a quiet breath of relief, half amused.

“Feels just like when we first met—when you came back from the States that first time, you were the same.”

“This time’s worse,” Luan Ye laughed too. “At least back then I still had a camera.”

Hearing that, Fan Qing suddenly felt something was off. His smile faded, and he studied Luan Ye carefully. “When you went back this time… they didn’t give you a hard time, did they?”

“You mean Bai Mingchuan? No.” Luan Ye didn’t say what he’d told him, only brushed it off lightly. “I just said I’m in a relationship and planning to return to develop my career here. To thank him and Aunt Bai for taking care of me all those years, I left them everything I’d earned abroad—the house, the studio. All the things inside too. Cameras, lenses, clothes, shoes, everything.”

Fan Qing’s brows furrowed as he listened.

Luan Ye smiled. “At the time, I just wanted to come back as soon as possible. It was easier to cut clean.”

To come back quickly, he had given up everything.

While Fan Qing had been counting the days until they could meet, Luan Ye had been facing pressure far heavier than he’d imagined—and chose, resolutely, to leave it all behind.

Fan Qing frowned at him for a while, then suddenly said, “I’ll give it to you.”

Luan Ye blinked. “What?”

“Money,” Fan Qing said. “The money you gave me during the holidays—I haven’t spent it.”

Luan Ye raised his brows at him.

“I’ll transfer it to you tonight. You’ll need it these next few days for clothes and hotels.” Fan Qing went on, “I’ll go shopping with you after this. You need shoes, a razor, pajamas…”

“Pajamas?” Luan Ye was puzzled at the sudden change of topic.

“You never want to wear the hotel bathrobes after showering,” Fan Qing sighed.

Luan Ye looked at him for a few seconds, holding back laughter, then nodded. “Your clothes will do for now. I like them.”

They did look good—Luan Ye’s pale skin made them look youthful and fresh on him.

“These are just cheap ones from the shops behind campus, three for a hundred yuan,” Fan Qing admitted, glancing down quickly at his mobile banking balance. “They’re not that comfortable. Don’t wear them.”

Luan Ye stayed quiet.

“And your camera…”

“Xu Song has them,” Luan Ye said. “I mailed the two from Xuehu Village to him.”

“You used more than just two in the States, didn’t you.”

Luan Ye didn’t reply. Fan Qing ran through the numbers in his head.

“I don’t know how much your cameras usually cost, but right now, I don’t have enough,” he admitted. “Maybe by winter break, once I’ve saved up.”

Dividends from the papermaking studio, plus leading trips into the mountains.

Luan Ye wasn’t sure what he was feeling. “You’re going to buy me a camera?”

“Not just a camera. All the things you had before, but couldn’t bring back.” Fan Qing said. “It might take a while.”

He ended with a slightly embarrassed smile.

“But I just don’t want… you to have to give up things you should have, or the life you deserve, just because you came back.”

He didn’t want Luan Ye to sacrifice his old life just to be with him.

He wanted Luan Ye to be happy and comfortable, wherever he was.

Luan Ye gazed at him for a long time. His lips slowly curved into a smile, eyes brimming with warmth.

“I don’t have anything I ‘should’ have. And there’s nothing I can’t give up,” Luan Ye said quietly.

There was a time when he even questioned whether living was worth it. There had never been anything he couldn’t abandon.

“But if I must name one thing—”

He reached out and took Fan Qing’s hand on the table, gave it a gentle squeeze, and didn’t let go.

“It’s right here in my hand.” He smiled.

“And besides, I still have money for now,” he added with a chuckle. “From before things went bad. Not much, but enough to last half a year.”

“Oh.” Fan Qing was caught off guard.

“And it’s not like I’m unemployed,” Luan Ye went on. “There are still royalties from past work. A few geography magazines want me to contribute too. Worst case, I can go join Xu Song.”

“Before I left, he was pestering me eight times a day to come to his studio. I didn’t even dare tell him I was back this time—I was afraid he’d kidnap me straight off the plane.”

Fan Qing laughed for a long while. “So, what are you planning next?”

“Rest for a few days. Stay with you through your birthday next week.” Luan Ye paused. “Then maybe go see my mom.”

Fan Qing looked up at him. Luan Ye lowered his eyes, took another sip of tea, and went on. “I need a few days to prepare myself first. Think about what to say… I’m kind of scared of her.”

He chuckled softly. “When I was little, whenever I did something wrong she’d scold me. I used to secretly call her ‘Teacher Luan’ behind her back instead of Mom. This time… she’ll probably…”

“She won’t scold you,” Fan Qing said seriously. “You haven’t done anything wrong.”

Luan Ye was quiet for a while, then nodded.

“After that, I’ll look for work, rent a place. Hopefully near you. When I’m not working, and you don’t have class…”

“I’ll come over,” Fan Qing cut in.

“Come over and stay with me,” Luan Ye said. “Watch movies, cook, sleep…”

“Take walks, hike,” Fan Qing added. “Don’t just stay in.”

“Alright.” Luan Ye nodded with a smile.

The restaurant was on the sixth floor, with clothing shops below. They left and wandered down floor by floor, shopping while letting their food settle.

First came the underwear they’d joked about, then pajamas, shoes, clothes, pants, razors, and all sorts of little daily necessities…

The scene was so familiar they couldn’t stop laughing as they went.

Men’s shops were sparse among the women’s, but after a round they’d gathered nearly everything. Taking the escalator down, Fan Qing checked the time.

“Back to the hotel now?” he asked.

“There’s a supermarket in the basement. Let’s get some fruit,” Luan Ye said.

The entrance was on the far side. They took the elevator down and walked through the first floor shops. Fan Qing’s phone buzzed twice—his roommate asking if he had the key and whether to leave the door unlocked.

Fan Qing quickly replied he wasn’t coming back that night and pocketed the phone. Beside him, Luan Ye said, “Tomorrow when you go back, your roommates will definitely grill you about where you spent the night.”

“I’ll just say I was with my boyfriend,” Fan Qing answered without hesitation. “Make them jealous.”

Luan Ye laughed for a while. “They’ll definitely—”

But then he suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

Fan Qing turned to him, seeing the smile fade from his face, a faint frown appearing.

Fan Qing’s own smile dropped. His tone grew anxious. “What’s wrong?”

Luan Ye’s gaze fixed on a spot ahead to the left. He pressed his lips together before finally speaking.

“I… think I just saw my mom.”

Fan Qing froze, then immediately turned to follow his line of sight.

Luan Ye was staring at a women’s shoe store. At that moment, there weren’t many people inside—only one woman trying on shoes.

She must have decided the pair fit, because she briskly went to the counter to pay. As the clerk boxed them up, she seemed to sense something, and when she stood and glanced outside, her eyes locked directly with Luan Ye’s.

Fan Qing saw her expression freeze, then shift to startled disbelief.

Luan Ye stayed silent. Fan Qing looked at him instead.

Just earlier at dinner, Luan Ye had said he needed time to prepare before seeing his mother. But now, without warning, here she was…

“Go say hello?” Fan Qing prompted softly. “She’s seen you.”

After a pause, Luan Ye walked over.

Luan Ping stood where she was. As he approached, her expression settled into calm again, though her grip on her handbag was tight.

They stared at each other for a few seconds before Luan Ye finally said, “Mom.”

She didn’t respond right away. Fan Qing glanced at her.

She was dressed in a slate-blue business suit, hair pinned neatly back. Everything about her was crisp and professional. Her brows were sharp—her face bore a striking resemblance to Luan Ye’s. Fine lines fanned out from her eyes. She wore makeup but no jewelry, just an elegant ladies’ watch on her left wrist.

At last, Luan Ping spoke. “When did you come back?”

“Just today.” Luan Ye paused, then added, “I was also back for a while in June.”

“For a while?”

“Over three months,” Luan Ye said.

She nodded, but said nothing.

The words made it sound as though he’d been back multiple times but never gone to see her. Fan Qing grew anxious and blurted in explanation.

“He came back before, to see you.”

Both mother and son turned to look at him.

“At New Year,” Fan Qing insisted. “At your neighborhood entrance. You probably didn’t notice.”

Sure enough, her brows furrowed as she turned back to her son.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

But even as she asked, she knew the answer. Her gaze shifted away from him and landed on Fan Qing.

Fan Qing began to understand the way Luan Ye had described his mother before—her back was perfectly straight, and she carried an imposing presence without needing to raise her voice. When she looked over, her aura could be felt immediately.

Fan Qing hesitated, unsure whether he should greet her first or remain silent to leave space for the mother and son. But beside him, Luan Ye, under that kind of aura, had already spoken.

“My boyfriend, Fan Qing.”