There were seven or eight girls who came with Ding Xiaofei. Many of whom lived near the pier, so it was convenient for them to get there by bike. Among them, Xie An’yu recognized two or three faces but couldn’t recall their names, while the rest were complete strangers.
It was normal for him not to know them, as most of these girls were from other high school classes and had barely exchanged more than a few words with Xie An’yu.
Guo Tianyang and Ding Ying also walked over. Guo Tianyang laughed and said, “How did so many people know you were coming back today?”
Xie An’yu shot a glance at Ding Xiaofei.
Ding Xiaofei raised both hands in surrender. “I swear I only mentioned it to Zhang Xiao! These people definitely weren’t gathered by me—at the very least, I’m not the main culprit here.”
Xie An’yu had been meaning to ask, “Who’s Zhang Xiao?”
“You don’t even remember Zhang Xiao? She was the class beauty in our old class.”
Xie An’yu didn’t have a strong impression of her. A few girls’ faces flashed in his mind, but none matched the name.
“Is she your girlfriend?”
“Of course not!” Ding Xiaofei denied immediately. “She’s in the same class as me now, sitting right in front.”
Zhou Yi chuckled lightly, eyeing the group of girls. “They seem to be getting along just fine. Shouldn’t they all be love rivals? Yet here they are, coming together to welcome our island heartthrob. Xiao Xie, did you have a fan club at school or something?”
Ding Xiaofei grinned. “No fan club, but there were definitely tons of girls crushing on him. Over the years in middle and high school, I’ve lost count of how many love letters I’ve delivered for him.”
Xie An’yu glanced at him. “Really?”
“Of course! Once, I even tried saving them up to give to you all at once. But then I got caught reading manga in class—the homeroom teacher ransacked my desk and confiscated the whole stack of love letters. She even scolded me, saying I had too much time on my hands. After that, I stopped taking on the job.”
Zhou Yi burst into laughter, clutching Shi Wuyang’s shoulder as he doubled over.
“You didn’t tell An’yu about the love letters being confiscated?” Guo Tianyang asked.
“What’s the point? They were already taken. I don’t even remember which girls gave them to me.”
Guo Tianyang clicked his tongue. “What a tragedy…”
Ding Xiaofei smirked. “Confiscated or not, it wouldn’t have made a difference—Xiao Dao wouldn’t have read them anyway.” He nudged Xie An’yu with his elbow. “Don’t tell me you still think no one’s into you. I’m telling you, there’s a whole ocean of them. It’s just that the girls at our school are a bit more reserved and don’t dare make it too obvious.”
Xie An’yu didn’t want to hear any of this, his expression growing visibly impatient.
“Can we get a taxi here?” Yu Feng asked from behind.
“Yeah,” Ding Xiaofei answered. “The cars at the entrance can take you.”
“Let’s go, head to the accommodation first,” Yu Feng said.
Xie An’yu had no desire to face the crowd of girls lingering nearby. He picked up his luggage and walked past them without a glance, but one girl mustered the courage to call out, “Xie An’yu!”
Xie An’yu stiffly turned around.
“Are you leaving again this time?” the girl asked, her ears turning red.
Xie An’yu nodded. At his nod, the girls’ expressions were clearly disappointed. Ding Xiaofei came over and said, “Alright, break it up. You’ve all seen him now—no need to just stand around here. Go on home.”
Guo Tianyang said his goodbyes to Xie An’yu. He and Ding Ying had come by bicycle and planned to head to the beach after picking Xie An’yu up at the pier.
At the entrance of the ticket hall, there were many private drivers looking for passengers. Yu Feng found a rundown minivan—it was spacious enough to seat five or six people.
Zhou Yi got into the car and said with a laugh, “I think those girls seem a bit like Lord Ye who claimed to love dragons—all shy, wanting to come over but not daring to.”
Shi Wuyang glanced out the window and smiled. “You really think they’re here to chase stars?”
“Pretty much. I even saw one of them taking photos with her phone earlier.”
Xie An’yu stared out the window in silence, his expression still very tense. Yu Feng, sitting beside him, held a Q.Q candy to his lips. Xie An’yu’s lips were tightly pressed together when suddenly, something soft touched his mouth.
“Stop looking so serious,” Yu Feng’s voice came from beside him. “Have a Q.Q candy to calm your nerves.”
Xie An’yu stiffened for a couple of seconds before parting his lips slightly and taking the gummy.
They were sitting in the back row. Hearing the commotion, Zhou Yi turned around. “What Q.Q candy?”
Yu Feng popped a Q.Q candy into his own mouth, chewing it as if nothing had happened. Xie An’yu was also chewing on one—grape-flavored. The tiny candy took him what felt like eighty-one[mfn]九九八十一 (jiǔ jiǔ bā shí yī): T/N: according to netizen, this phrase refers to the idiom ninety-nine eighty-one difficulties [九九八十一難 (jiǔ jiǔ bā shí yī nán)], lit. ninety-nine eighty-one difficulties; trials and tribulations; countless obstacles and challenges; numerous hardships and difficulties. The idiom refers to the 81 challenges and obstacles that Tang Monk and his disciples had to overcome during his journey to India to retrieve Buddhist scriptures in the classic novel 《Journey to the West》. In modern usage, this idiom is used to describe a situation or task that is extremely difficult or challenging to accomplish, requiring a great deal of effort, perseverance, and determination. It implies that the challenge is so great that it seems almost insurmountable, like the obstacles faced by Sun Wukong on his journey.
[/mfn] chews before he finally managed to swallow it with great difficulty.
The candy was sweet, but he felt dizzy.
This Q.Q candy was almost as potent as alcohol.
Yu Feng handed the bag of Q.Q candies to Zhou Yi, who took one and grinned as he popped it into his mouth. “Still got a childlike heart, huh? What’s with the sudden craving for Q.Q candies?”
“Pilfered from Xiao Xie,” Yu Feng said.
Xie An’yu had given Yu Feng two bags yesterday, and he still had one left.
“Give me a few more,” Zhou Yi held out his hand, then turned to Shi Wuyang. “Professor Shi, want some Q.Q candies?”
Zhou Yi and Yu Feng kept saying ‘Q.Q candies’, which amused Shi Wuyang. “No, thanks. There aren’t many in the bag. I won’t steal from you guys.”
Yu Feng poured three candies into Zhou Yi’s hand—not a single one more.
“You’re so stingy,” Zhou Yi clicked his tongue.
“There aren’t many to begin with. A beggar like you shouldn’t complain about the portion.”
Yu Feng turned to Xie An’yu. “Want more?”
Xie An’yu shook his head, his expression seeming even tenser than before.
“Xiao Fei,” Zhou Yi called out.
“Yeah, what’s up?”
“I heard from Xiao Xie that the guesthouse we’re staying at this time is run by your sister?”
Ding Xiaofei let out an ‘Ah’. “Not my biological sister—my cousin. Don’t worry, though. Even though her place doesn’t get many guests, the environment is still pretty nice.”
“Not many visitors?”
“Yeah, not many tourists come here. There are a few more now, but before, hardly anyone came. My cousin only started this guesthouse a couple of years ago—she co-founded it with a friend.” Ding Xiaofei turned around. “Your visit actually brought her some business.”
Zhou Yi chuckled. “We’ve got Xiao Xie to thank for that. It was his idea.”
When they arrived at the guesthouse, Ding Xiaofei walked straight to the front desk. “My cousin isn’t here today?”
The receptionist was a young girl. She paused the video on her phone and said, “She was here but just stepped out for something.”
“Then help them check in,” Ding Xiaofei gestured behind him.
“Sure,” the girl replied, then asked Xie An’yu and the others, “Did you book through the app?”
“No,” Zhou Yi said. “We’ll book now.”
“How many rooms? Standard or king bed?”
“Is a standard room with twin beds?”
The girl at the front desk nodded with a smile. “Yes.”
Zhou Yi turned to ask the group for their opinions. “What do you think?”
“One room for each person is fine,” Yu Feng said.
“Money burning a hole in your pocket, huh? Two people can share a standard room—it’s twin beds, after all. You and Xiao Xie can take one, and I’ll share with Professor Shi.”
Yu Feng glanced at him. “The price difference between a king bed and a standard room isn’t that big.”
Zhou Yi looked at Xie An’yu. “Xiao Xie, what about you?”
Since Yu Feng clearly wanted a single room, Xie An’yu couldn’t very well contradict him on the spot. Besides, the last thing he wanted right now was to be alone in a room with Yu Feng again.
“Single room,” Xie An’yu said.
“Alright, then you two get king bed room each. Professor Shi and I will take the standard room.”
“Why don’t you ask for my opinion?” Shi Wuyang interjected, puzzled.
Zhou Yi grinned apologetically. “Come on, sleeping alone is boring. Just keep me company—I’ll tell you some bad jokes.”
“Tell me a crosstalk routine instead,” Shi Wuyang joked. “I’d rather hear that.”
Zhou Yi agreed immediately. “Sure, no problem.”
The front desk girl confirmed, “So, two king bed rooms and one standard room, right?”
“Right.”
“Got it. Please hand me your IDs.”
After completing the check-in procedures, the girl handed them their key cards. “Your rooms are on the second floor.”
The guesthouse wasn’t very large, with only three floors in total. The first floor housed a small cat café where guests could order drinks and pet the cats. The staircase was narrow, and the ceiling was low—Yu Feng felt like his head was about to brush against the floorboards as he carried his suitcase upstairs. Still, the place had a nice atmosphere, decorated in a bohemian style, with unique handicrafts hanging along the hallway.
Ding Xiaofei followed Xie An’yu into his room and, once they were alone, immediately leaped onto him in excitement. Ding Xiaofei was a head shorter and much slimmer than Xie An’yu, so he easily clung to him, wrapping his legs around Xie An’yu’s waist as he fake-sobbed dramatically. “I missed you so much, bro…”
No sooner had he spoken than a knock came at the door. Both turned to see Yu Feng standing outside, holding a bag.
Ding Xiaofei’s current position looked like a bear hug from behind, yet Xie An’yu stood perfectly steady, his back straight, as if carrying Ding Xiaofei required no effort at all.
Ding Xiaofei quickly scrambled off Xie An’yu’s back, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment.
Yu Feng stepped in and handed Xie An’yu the bag. “Your clothes.”
Xie An’yu had brought along his two trusty travel companions—a black backpack and a black tote bag. The backpack was stuffed with snacks, while the tote bag held his toiletries along with souvenirs and gifts for Ding Xiaofei. With no space left, Yu Feng had offered to carry Xie An’yu’s clothes separately in his own suitcase.
Yu Feng set the bag down and left without another word. Ding Xiaofei exhaled. “Scared the hell out of me. Damn, that was awkward.”
Xie An’yu pulled out the gifts he’d brought for Ding Xiaofei from his bag.
“So, which one’s the guy letting you stay at his place?” Ding Xiaofei asked, sitting on the bed. “The one without glasses?”
“The one who just came in.”
Ding Xiaofei was a little surprised. “Really? He seems pretty aloof. I thought it was the one without glasses; he seems easy to get along with.”
“They’re friends.”
“What do they all do? They seem pretty well-off, dressed so stylishly.”
“The one who just came in is a photographer. The other two are university professors.”
“No way, really? They’re all intellectuals!”
“These are the things I brought for you. Take them back with you later.”
“Wow, this much?” Ding Xiaofei immediately spotted the Switch packaging. “Holy shit, you got me this?!”
“Mm. You’ve always wanted one, right?”
Ding Xiaofei grabbed the Switch and hugged it to his chest, overwhelmed with excitement. “Fuck, I could kiss you to death right now!”
Xie An’yu thought for a moment, then suddenly said, “Xiaofei, hug me.”
“…Ah?” Ding Xiaofei was stunned. “What do you mean?”
“The literal meaning.”
“What’s this about? What… do you mean?” Ding Xiaofei was completely baffled. “You want me to… hug you?”
Xie An’yu nodded.
“How should I hug you?”
Xie An’yu stood still. “An embrace.”
“…Alright, then I’m hugging you now?” Ding Xiaofei stepped closer, looking utterly bewildered. “What’s this all about? I’m really hugging you, alright?”
With that, Ding Xiaofei opened his arms and wrapped his arms around Xie An’yu. Xie An’yu closed his eyes. His heartbeat didn’t quicken, his breathing didn’t change, his brain didn’t feel starved for oxygen—everything was perfectly normal.
When he’d hugged Yu Feng like this before, it had felt just as normal.
Now, forget hugging—just having Yu Feng stand half a meter away and look at him would probably make his heart pound loud enough to hear.
“Is this okay?” Ding Xiaofei asked near Xie An’yu’s ear.
Xie An’yu hummed in response, then pushed Ding Xiaofei away.
“What was that about?” Ding Xiaofei was completely lost.
“Nothing. I just wanted to confirm something.”
He wanted to confirm whether Yu Feng was that special existence.
Ding Xiaofei touched his forehead. “Are you exhausted from the trip or something?”
Xie An’yu looked at Ding Xiaofei without saying anything.
If it had been Yu Feng touching his forehead right now, he’d have been so nervous he wouldn’t know where to look.
“I’m fine,” Xie An’yu said. “Take the stuff home first.”
“Come back with me. Have lunch at my place.”
“I’m going to the cemetery later.”
“…Alright. Then come over for dinner tonight. Bring your friends—I already told my parents.”
Xie An’yu nodded.
Ding Xiaofei took the gifts and headed home first. Xie An’yu tidied up his luggage in the room, and before long, Zhou Yi’s voice came from outside the door.
“Xiao Xie, are you done unpacking?” Zhou Yi knocked.
Xie An’yu opened the door. “Yeah.”
“Did you pick up bad habits from your Brother Yu? You never reply to messages in the group chat either.”
“My phone was in my backpack.”
“I told them we should’ve paired up. Now we have to go room to room rounding everyone up—such a hassle. Let’s go grab lunch.”
Before coming to Shuangye Isle, Zhou Yi had initially considered asking Xie An’yu to be their little tour guide. However, after being reminded by Yu Feng, he realized this wasn’t appropriate. After all, Shuangye Isle wasn’t exactly a formal tourist destination, and Xie An’yu’s current situation was quite delicate. Though the island was his hometown, he no longer had a home there.
So Zhou Yi decided not to make specific plans for this trip. They would go wherever the mood took them—enjoying the scenery, eating, drinking, and simply relaxing.
“You guys go ahead first. I have something to attend to,” Xie An’yu said.
“What’s up? Going to see a friend? Why not go after lunch? There’s no rush.”
“I need to go to the cemetery to see my parents and my grandma.”
Zhou Yi’s smile froze on his face. He lowered his voice. “We’ll go with you.”
“Mm,” Xie An’yu nodded.
The group rented a minivan and drove straight to the cemetery.
“Professor Zhou, when you turn right at the intersection, there’s a flower shop. Could you stop there? I need to buy two bouquets.”
“Sure.”
Zhou Yi parked outside the flower shop. He didn’t have to wait long before Xie An’yu emerged shortly after, holding two bouquets—one of chrysanthemums and the other of sunflowers.
“That was fast,” Zhou Yi remarked, surprised.
“I called the shop owner in advance to place the order.”
“No wonder,” Zhou Yi chuckled.
The car parked in an open area outside the cemetery, and Xie An’yu registered at the entrance. The sunflowers were for his mother; she had loved them most in life because the first flowers his dad ever gave her were sunflowers.
Xie An’yu’s parents were buried together, their graves adjacent to his grandmother’s. He didn’t say anything to them, simply placing the flowers down and standing quietly for a while.
I’m living well.
Xie An’yu silently told his parents as he gazed at their photos on the tombstones.
After seeing Xie An’yu’s parents, they found a place to eat. There were many seafood restaurants in the area, and the food was all delicious. After lunch, they returned to the guesthouse to change clothes, intending to go to the beach.
Apart from autumn, summer was the busiest season on Shuangye Isle. Autumn attracted visitors for the maple leaves, while summer drew crowds to the beach.
“Didn’t expect the beach to be this crowded,” Zhou Yi remarked, wearing sunglasses and walking barefoot on the sand.
The guesthouse they stayed in faced the sea, with the beach just a short walk away—an excellent location.
Zhou Yi was a little puzzled. “How come no one’s staying at the guesthouse when the location is this good?”
Shi Wuyang let out a laugh. “Have you seen the price of this guesthouse?”
Zhou Yi turned to look at him.
“It’s more than double the cost of other guesthouses. There are plenty of options near this beach—people would naturally choose the cheaper ones.”
“It’s a bit expensive, but the environment is great. The decor is so tasteful.”
Zhou Yi carried his sandals as he walked slowly toward the beach, with Shi Wuyang beside him. Yu Feng and Xie An’yu followed behind. Xie An’yu glanced at Yu Feng. “Brother, did you put on sunscreen?”
Yu Feng chuckled. “Why are you so insistent on me putting on sunscreen?”
“You’ll get sunburned.”
“I’m not that delicate.”
“Why didn’t you invite your friend to come along?” Yu Feng asked.
“I did. He’ll be here soon.”
Ding Xiaofei brought his girlfriend along with Zhang Xiao, the class beauty. Since the class beauty was coming, her admirers naturally had to tag along too. One thing led to another, and before they knew it, a whole crowd had been roped in.
As Xie An’yu watched the large group of people approaching from a distance, he deeply regretted the text he had sent to Ding Xiaofei earlier.
Ding Xiaofei waved energetically from afar, looking triumphant, while Xie An’yu slumped with a deadpan expression and sighed.
Zhou Yi strolled over leisurely, spotting Ding Xiaofei’s familiar figure. He tilted his chin up for a better look and chuckled, “Xiao Xie, I’ve realized Xiao Feifei has a summoning skill.”
Shi Wuyang chimed in teasingly, “This time, he didn’t just summon girls—he summoned guys too.”
Zhou Yi burst out laughing and sighed wistfully, “It’s so good to be young.”
There were lounge chairs on the beach for resting, and Yu Feng found one to recline on lazily.
Zhou Yi walked over and slapped his thigh. “Are you here to retire?”
Yu Feng clicked his tongue and glanced down at his thigh. He was wearing swim trunks, and the slap had left a red mark.
“Tsk, tsk,” Zhou Yi remarked, eyeing the reddened skin on his thigh. “Such fair, delicate legs—just one slap and they turn red.”
Hearing this, Xie An’yu turned to look. Only then did he notice Yu Feng’s strikingly long legs.
I’m actually a bit confused with how to translate Ding Xiaofei’s name when he was called by others. His name is Ding Xiaofei [丁小飛 (Dīng Xiǎofēi)], the ‘Xiao’ is part of his name, but older people or close friends and relatives usually use ‘Xiao’ to call someone—like how Zhou Yi called Xie An’Yu ‘Xiao Xie’ (kinda like -chan or -tan in Japanese). In that case, I separate the ‘Xiao’ and the name ‘Xie’, but Ding Xiaofei is Xiaofei to begin with.
[dropdown title=”List of Idiom in Chapter 52″]
嬉皮笑臉 (xī pí xiào liǎn): (derogatory) smiling insincerely, perhaps with the intention to flatter; facetious; joking inappropriately when talking something serious; smiling mischievously or ingratiatingly; grinning cheekily; smirking; with a mischievous smile; with a playful grin; with a roguish smile; describes a non-serious or frivolous appearance.葉公好龍 (Yè Gōng hào lóng): lit. Lord Ye’s passion for dragons (idiom); Duke of Ye/She liking dragons; to pretend to like something which one actually dislikes or fears; to pretend to be fond of sth while actually fearing it; ostensible fondness of sth one really fears; professed love of what one actually fears; pretend to love sth. while actually being afraid of it; ostensible fondness of sth one really fears; refers to someone who claims to like something but actually doesn’t like it, or even fears it. From a parable in 《新序》 (New Prefaces), describing Duke of Ye/She, who was obsessed with drawings of dragons, but fled in terror when he saw a real dragon. 葉公子高好龍，鉤以寫龍，鑿以寫龍，屋室雕文以寫龍。於是天龍聞而下之，窺頭於牖，施尾於堂。葉公見之，棄而還走，失其魂魄，五色無主。是葉公非好龍也，好夫似龍而非龍者也。, Duke of Ye/She Zigao liked dragons, dragons drawn on hooks, dragons drawn on wine vessels, dragons drawn at house carvings. So, the dragon in the sky listened then went down, head peeking through the windowsill, tail extended into the hall. Duke of Ye/She saw it, gave up then turned around and ran, losing his soul, extremely terrified. This is Duke of Ye/She not liking dragons, he liked those resembling dragons but are not dragons.
童心未泯 (tóng xīn wèi mǐn): one’s childish disposition remains even though he/she is grownup; one’s childish disposition remains; still preserve traces of childishness; still retain childlike innocence; (of grown-ups) still preserve traces of childlike innocence; still retain one’s childlike innocence; describe a person who still has a naive heart despite his age.
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; to act deliberately or pretentiously.
不費吹灰之力 (bù fèi chuī huī zhī lì): easier than blowing off dust—without the slightest effort; as easy as pie/ABC; very easy; effortless; with ease; as easy as falling off a log.
匪夷所思 (fěi yí suǒ sī): not what an ordinary person can imagine; unimaginable; unusual; fantastic; outrageous; freakish; (of ideas or actions) unimaginably/incredibly queer; bizarre; refers to behaviors that are bizarre and beyond the ordinary, and cannot be imagined by ordinary people based on common sense; From I Ching, Hexagram 59 (《易经·渙卦》): 六四：渙其群，元吉。渙有丘，匪夷所思。, The fourth SIX, divided, shows its subject scattering the (different) parties (in the state); which leads to great good fortune. From the dispersion (he collects again good men standing out, a crowd) like a mound, which is what ordinary men would not have thought of.
浩浩蕩蕩 (hào hào dàng dàng): (of water) torrential; grandiose; majestic; vast and mighty; grand and majestic; magnificent; overwhelming; on a grand scale; sweeping; surging; describe a person or thing that is large in scale and majestic in appearance. It can refer to the vastness of natural water or the grand scene of group activities.
插科打諢 (chā kē dǎ hùn): lit. (of an actor of traditional Chinese opera) to make people laugh through actions and jokes (during a performance); to jest; to joke; to tell a joke; to crack jokes and play the fool; to wisecrack; to include impromptu comic material in opera performance (idiom); buffoonery; (of Chinese opera) make impromptu comic gestures and remarks; insert comic remarks; refers to the laughter-inducing actions or words that opera and folk art actors insert into their performances. Now it generally refers to joking and amusing.
[/dropdown]Check out my completed & current project at my carrd. If you like my translation, you can buy me coffee at Ko-fi~ Thank you.
