Shen Jianqing emerged from the bathroom, having washed away the dust of travel, his hair dripping wet.
His tattered Miao clothing was beyond wear, so he was temporarily dressed in my shirt and trousers.
As he walked out, I had a momentary lapse. This was the first time I’d seen him in clothes other than his Miao attire. He had a good physique and handsome features, making even ordinary clothes look good on him. On closer inspection, Shen Jianqing was no different from any vibrant young man just entering university.
“I didn’t put them on wrong, did I, Yuze Ah-ge?” Shen Jianqing walked over, looking at me on the sofa with a helpless expression.
His hair was still dripping water, and his white shirt was soaked, revealing the skin beneath.
“No, you didn’t put them on wrong.” I stood up, feeling inexplicably warm, and cleared my throat. “Go dry your hair. It’s cold at night now, you’ll catch a chill easily.”
Shen Jianqing said blankly, “Dry it?”
It then occurred to me that he might not even know what a hairdryer was, so I got up, went to the bathroom cabinet, and took out the hairdryer.
“Whoosh—”
After plugged in, the hairdryer let out a noisy hum. Shen Jianqing took it, playing with it curiously for a while.
He was like a child, unfamiliar with everything but curious about it all.
I leaned by the window, my gaze fixed on the endless night outside and the dazzling neon lights, my mind blank.
The hairdryer behind me stopped working. Shen Jianqing curiously pressed the switch again, fiddling with it a few times before putting it away. He shuffled out in slippers, making a crisp sound.
Involuntarily, I raised my eyes. In the night, the glass was like a hazy mirror; I could see the person behind me through it.
Shen Jianqing gradually lost the initial restraint he had when he first arrived. He moved around, tidying his belongings, putting the bamboo tube into the kitchen, and folding the cloth that had wrapped it, placing it under the coffee table.
His movements were so skilled that they gave me the illusion of domesticity.
I watched all this through the reflection in the glass, my heart surprisingly at peace like never before.
This was the first time anyone other than myself had stayed overnight in this house. I’m naturally quiet and don’t have many friends; people who visit usually just sit for a bit and then leave.
I suddenly thought of the family of three living across from me. Occasionally, when I passed by their open door, I’d catch a brief glimpse of the woman tending to plants, the child reading, and the busy man inside.
I didn’t envy them; sometimes, I even felt that their presence across the hall made my own life seem colder and less lively.
Now, Shen Jianqing moving around in my house seemed to bring a touch of warmth and life.
“What are you looking at?” Shen Jianqing finally approached me, coming to the window.
The vibrant neon lights outside instantly entered his eyes. He didn’t wait for my answer and fell silent.
He observed intently, colorful light reflecting in his dark pupils. The street-side shop signs varied in style, different light boards flashing as if in competition. Cars crisscrossed like weaving threads, and streetlights stood like silent giants, casting a gentle glow. Someone was live-streaming on the street; though the lively sounds didn’t reach us, the crowd surrounding them indicated the scene was far from quiet.
I was used to such night scenes, but Shen Jianqing was completely captivated. I could easily relate to his curiosity about new experiences, I was probably just like that when I first came to the Miao village.
But here, our roles had reversed.
I suddenly thought, if I wanted to keep Shen Jianqing in my small house, no one would ever find out. He was, after all, a person without an identity.
But I wouldn’t do that.
I knew deep down I had no right to force someone to stay or leave.
Shen Jianqing’s gaze remained fixed, and he said, “So this is what the world looks like from up high. It’s truly beautiful ah, completely different from the quiet and desolate Miao village.”
I said, “This world isn’t just as big as one Miao village; there are many people you haven’t met. You should go see more places.”
Perhaps if he met more people, he would realize that Li Yuze was just one of countless ordinary individuals.
Shen Jianqing turned to look at me and said, “Yuze Ah-ge, are you telling me to leave?”
“That’s not what I mean.”
“I will leave,” he paused, looking directly into my eyes, and repeated, “I will leave.”
The wind picked up outside the window, and a chill seeped into the room, rustling Shen Jianqing’s semi-long hair. He said, “But Yuze Ah-ge, considering how far I’ve traveled, could you grant me one request?”
“What request?”
“Just smile at me, Yuze Ah-ge, like you did when we first met. I won’t stay long, I won’t bother you for long. I just want to see what the world you love is like, just for two days, and then I’ll leave.”
Leave after two days?
Should I feel relieved or wistful?
Shen Jianqing’s voice was full of pleading; it was the first time I’d seen him look so humble. Anyone would find it hard to refuse him when he had such a demeanour, brought so low.
He tentatively reached out and took my drooping right hand. The burning warmth of his palm immediately transferred to the back of my hand, and that warmth traveled upward, as if trying to bore into my heart.
I withdrew my hand, left him with an “I’ll think about it,” and returned to my room.
After thinking for a moment, I locked the door.
The warmth on my hand lingered for a long time. I didn’t turn on the light, I just sat there in the darkness.
Seeing Shen Jianqing again and noticing these changes in him naturally stirred something within me. My feelings for him had grown too complex to be defined simply as love or hate.
Two days, just two days.
A subtle voice was shaking my resolve. Then that voice grew louder and louder…
I sighed softly and burrowed into my bed.
I don’t know how I eventually fell asleep, but when I opened my eyes again, it was already daylight.
Today was Monday, and I had an elective class in the morning. As a senior, I didn’t have many classes, but the teachers were frequent with attendance checks. Especially in my major, where there were few boys, if I missed class, the teacher would almost certainly spot it immediately.
I opened my bedroom door and nearly stepped on Shen Jianqing, who was sleeping curled up by my doorway, wrapped in a thin blanket.
Hearing the movement, Shen Jianqing instantly opened his eyes, still a bit groggy, but he scrambled up and said, “Yuze Ah-ge.”
I frowned. “Why are you sleeping here?”
There was a bed in the small room next to mine, and the sofa was certainly big enough for him.
Shen Jianqing said, “I was afraid you’d quietly leave again in the morning…”
I said helplessly, “This is my home; how could I not come back?”
Shen Jianqing asked, “Where are you going?”
“I’m going to school… Do you want to come with me?”
Shen Jianqing’s eyes immediately lit up.
“But I have my own things to do; I won’t change my schedule or plans because of you.”
Shen Jianqing nodded in agreement.
Neither of us vocalized the answer to yesterday’s request.
Yan University has an open campus, allowing outside visitors to enter. Moreover, with his shirt and black trousers, he looked more like a university student than I did, so bringing Shen Jianqing into the school wasn’t difficult.
Come to think of it, he was only eighteen or nineteen. If he had been born into an ordinary family, he would be attending university right now.
People flowed all around us, every person we passed was youthful and vibrant.
I thought Shen Jianqing would be very curious, but he wasn’t. He just followed quietly by my side.
Maybe it was Shen Jianqing’s noticeably semi-long hair, or perhaps his striking good looks, but passersby often glanced back at him as he walked.
Shen Jianqing, however, wore a calm and unperturbed expression.
We walked in silence for a long time before he said, “Yuze Ah-ge, what is this place for?”
I replied, “This is a place where children of the same age gather to learn.”
“There’s no place like this in the Miao village,” Shen Jianqing said, his voice tinged with loneliness. “Everything I know, I learned from my mother. After she died, there was no one left to teach me anything.”
The Shidi Miao village wasn’t large, and the skills required for survival there weren’t many.
We arrived at the public classroom for the lecture. At this point, a sparse scattering of people were already seated. This elective was a large class, with three majors attending together, so I didn’t know many of the students.
We chose seats towards the back. Directly in front of us sat an unfamiliar young couple. They were sitting closely together, whispering to each other, looking very intimate.
This was a common sight on any university campus; pure and beautiful campus romances were a unique feature of college life. But I inadvertently looked up and saw Shen Jianqing staring intently at the couple.
His scrutinizing gaze assessed the two of them, then he suddenly leaned closer and whispered to me, “Yuze Ah-ge, can schools also gather peers for ‘Wandering and Making Friends’?”
His misunderstanding… I suddenly didn’t know how to answer.
“Ah Ze! Li Yuze!”
Just then, someone called out to me from the front, rescuing me from my awkward predicament.
I looked up and saw Zhang Xu.
“Ah Ze! Why are you sitting so far back today? That’s not like you! I was waiting for you to save me a seat!”
As he spoke, he walked over to us and plopped his textbook down. Zhang Xu then noticed Shen Jianqing beside me, paused, and came closer, saying, “Is this your friend? He’s so handsome; an artist, perhaps? Such artistic flair! I haven’t seen you bring him to hang out before? Is he from our school?”
I explained, “He’s not from our school… Come, say hello.”
Zhang Xu settled in comfortably, taking a seat with a relaxed smile. “I’m Zhang Xu, Xu as in ‘vivid and lifelike.’ Friend, what’s your name?”
Shen Jianqing looked at me, then said softly, “Shen Jianqing, Jian as in ‘see,’ Qing as in ‘Ah Qing’.”
“Shen Jianqing…” Zhang Xu frowned, murmuring softly, “That name sounds familiar, I remember…”
His voice trailed off abruptly.
Zhang Xu looked at me and the quietly seated Shen Jianqing, who was beside me, with a slightly gossipy, shocked expression.
