Instead of staying overnight at his aunt’s place, Jian Heng took him to take a taxi to a residential area some distance away from the city center.
The residential area looked a bit old, but the security and environment were surprisingly good. The lawn was neatly trimmed, and there was no litter blowing around in the wind. When two of them entered, the security guard even checked Jian Heng’s ID.
It felt a bit like a paradise.
The interior decoration of the building also had a vibe from over a decade ago. There was no elevator, and the handrails on the stairs showed signs of rust, but it was very clean, unlike the He Ping residential area where one family’s bundle of rotten scallions and another’s box of spoiled potatoes would fill the corridor.
Jian Heng was very familiar with the place. On the way up, he even smiled and greeted an old lady passing by. The old lady smiled and asked him why he hadn’t been back for a long time, inviting him to sit down when he had time, to which he agreed.
Jian Heng had lived here before, and for quite some time.
Qin Cheng suppressed his curiosity and followed him to the fourth floor, where they stopped.
“This is the place I lived after I turned sixteen,” Jian Heng opened the door, and a wave of warm air mixed with the scent of fruit rushed out. “You can stay here when you come to Chuan City in the future.”
“Is it rented?” Qin Cheng asked while changing his shoes, suddenly feeling a sense of reverence.
This is the place Jian Heng used to live, a place filled with his memories. He has now officially stepped into Jian Heng’s past.
The decorator of the house must have had a particular fondness for wood.
Wooden floors, solid wood sofas, a coffee table that looked like it was made of mahogany, and also a wooden carving next to the TV cabinet that was hard to identify, all enveloped the whole house in a scholarly atmosphere, creating a sense of depth and history.
To describe it with Qin Cheng’s limited vocabulary, it can be summed up as; ‘This is a good flex[mfn]這個逼裝的好 (zhège bī zhuāng de hǎo): a slang expression, literally meaning “this force is dressed well.” It’s a playful and somewhat sarcastic way of saying that something is done well, often with a hint of admiration.[/mfn]’.
There should be someone who comes to clean regularly; the air doesn’t smell dusty but is instead filled with a faint fruity fragrance. The heating is very sufficient, making it feel like stepping into a small furnace upon entering.
“It was originally a rented house, but after thinking it over, I decided to buy it. Now it’s our joint property as husband and wife,” Jian Heng led him to the bedroom, opened the door with a smile at the corner of his mouth, “Welcome.”
With an inexplicable sense of ceremony, Qin Cheng stood outside the bedroom and responded to his words with a ‘I’m back’ before stepping inside.
The bed in the bedroom was much larger than the one in the He Ping residential area. Qin Cheng’s first reaction in his mind was that they wouldn’t fall off no matter how they tossed and turned…
“Ahem,” the mental theater spiraled out of control, and Qin Cheng’s ears turned warm. He sat on the bed and sniffed, “It smells so good, what kind of fruit scent is this?”
“Watermelon-scented perfume. The cleaner comes regularly to tidy up and sprays a bit,” Jian Heng sat next to him, raised his hand to wrap his arms around him, and they both fell onto the bed. The bed was clean and soft, smelling of laundry detergent. Jian Heng’s eyes were bright, filled with a smile. “Do you like it here?”
“I like it a lot.” Qin Cheng closed his eyes. This was Jian Heng’s true territory. Even though he hadn’t been back for a long time, the air still carried the scent of pheromone incense. It wasn’t strong, but faint and everyday, a scent left by years of living, full of the essence of life.
Being completely immersed here gave Qin Cheng a feeling of complete possession of Jian Heng. This person, from the past to the future, including the present, was all imprinted with his presence.
Just thinking about it brought an indescribable softness to his heart, making him feel as if his whole body had fallen into freshly sun-dried blankets——comfortable, relaxed, not wanting to think about anything else, just wanting to quietly nestle with him here.
“I forgot where I read a saying,” Qin Cheng held his hand, eyes closed, as if afraid that speaking too loudly would scare away this hard-won tranquility. He lowered his voice, speaking slowly: “Just living is not enough; we also need sunshine, freedom, and a bit of the fragrance of flowers[mfn]僅僅活着是不夠的，還需要有陽光、自由和一點花的芬芳 (Jǐn jǐn huó zhe shì bù gòu de, hái xū yào yǒu yáng guāng, zì yóu hé yī diǎn huā de fēn fāng): T/N: A quote from Hans Christian Anderson; “Just living is not enough,” said the butterfly, “one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.” — Hans Christian Anderson, The Complete Fairy Tales. Hans Christian Andersen; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. His most famous fairy tales include “The Emperor’s New Clothes“, “The Little Mermaid“, “The Nightingale“, “The Steadfast Tin Soldier“, “The Red Shoes“, “The Princess and the Pea“, “The Snow Queen“, “The Ugly Duckling“, “The Little Match Girl“, and “Thumbelina“.[/mfn].”
He opened his eyes, tilted his head to look at Jian Heng in the warm, fruit-scented air, his lips curling up, his eyes full of laughter. Shaking his head, he sighed with emotion: “The sunshine is you, the freedom is you, there’s no fragrance of flowers, but the scent of damp wood is abundant…”
“Really good… everywhere is good, everything is good.”
Jian Heng gently grasped his palm, a smile spreading across his lips: “Yeah, really good.”
“Will there be no more trouble in the future?” Qin Cheng turned over, looking at him with concern, “Will Jian Xingguo not be able to touch you anymore?”
Qin Cheng liked the peaceful and happy days spent together with him, but the premise was that no one could threaten their current state.
“He hasn’t been able to touch me for a long time,” Jian Heng’s expression briefly flickered with some emotion, but it quickly faded as he soothingly stroked the palm of his hand, “It’s all in the past.”
Seeing his expression, Qin Cheng furrowed his brows. The emotions that had been suppressed in Jian Heng’s heart for so long were evident in his eyes, making Qin Cheng deny Jian Heng’s words for the first time. However, his tone was gentle: “You’re lying to me, you haven’t moved on.”
Jian Heng didn’t speak. Qin Cheng waited for a while, and once again lost to his silence. He grabbed his arm and considered his words for a few seconds before saying: “There’s nothing you need to hide from me. I’ve been through so much over the years. When I said I was a delicate flower, I was just joking with you. Ge is tough; I won’t be overwhelmed by a few more words from you. You can talk to me; there’s no need to bottle it up. The more you bottle it up, the more my heart aches. If my heart aches, yours aches too. If your heart aches, mine aches too… We’re like a Möbius strip[mfn]莫比烏斯帶 (mò bǐ wū sī dài): Möbius strip, a one-sided surface that can be constructed by affixing the ends of a rectangular strip after first having given one of the ends a one-half twist. This space exhibits interesting properties, such as having only one side and remaining in one piece when split down the middle. 
[/mfn]; how can we even talk about love? It’s too bitter.”
Jian Heng silently looked at Qin Cheng. Just when Qin Cheng thought he was about to speak, he shook his head and denied it again: “Really, there’s nothing.”
Qin Cheng stared at him, suddenly feeling like he was hitting a cotton ball with a punch——it was useless.
This metaphor wasn’t quite right either; he couldn’t bear to hit Jian Heng, he would rather hold him at the top of his heart and protect him dearly.
But Jian Heng always had this knot in his heart. No matter how sweet or happy they were usually, this knot couldn’t be untied. It didn’t affect their feelings, but seeing him like this, Qin Cheng felt distressed and always wanted to help him resolve it, hoping they could completely bid farewell to the past and start a truly new life.
Since the atmosphere was so good today, they might as well resolve the past unhappiness all at once.
“This student,” Qin Cheng held his face and rubbed it, “do you want to exchange secrets with your Ge?”
Jian Heng could tell at a glance what he was about to do, the corners of his mouth curled up. He should refuse; things that he didn’t want to share with anyone, things that he didn’t want anyone to know, should rot in his heart and decay with time.
But when he looked at that face, reason was overtaken by emotion. By the time he realized it, he had already nodded and said: “Let’s exchange.”
Coaxing Qin Cheng, hoping that he would be happy every day, hoping that he would wake up and look at him with a silly smile without any worries every day——this thought always occupied the top of his mind, even his nerves automatically responded first to this command.
Qin Cheng scratched the bed surface, and when he sighed in relief, his eyes looked particularly beautiful, curved like a satisfied carnivore, dangerous yet adorable.
“Let’s talk lying down, I’m a bit tired.” Qin Cheng said, patting the bed surface.
The two quickly took off their coats and lay down on the bed. Jian Heng took a blanket from the cupboard, shook it out, and spread it over the two of them.
Qin Cheng leaned against the pillow and lay down, feeling so comfortable that he wanted to roll around a couple of times and kick his legs.
“Let’s take two pillows back when we leave. I estimate that after lying down here, I won’t be able to sleep when I get home.” Qin Cheng said.
“Going from frugality to luxury is easy,” Jian Heng casually lit a cigarette. Although the upcoming topic was quite heavy for him, he couldn’t help but want to laugh when he heard what Qin Cheng said. “Going from luxury to frugality is difficult.”
“You’re about to turn me into a useless person. I can’t do anything right, but my eating, dressing, and living habits are getting more and more extravagant every day,” Qin Cheng said as he snuggled under the covers with him, squeezing his hand repeatedly. “We’re like an old married couple, so I won’t beat around the bush. You moved here to live by yourself when you were sixteen, but what about when I’m sixteen? Let me think about it, what was I doing back then…”
A sixteen-year-old who hadn’t yet been beaten down by society, a rebellious sixteen-year-old who wanted to fight the world, a sixteen-year-old with rich but frustrating experiences.
If the person in front of him hadn’t been Jian Heng, if it had been anyone else, he wouldn’t have been able to say it so easily.
“I remember,” Qin Cheng narrowed his eyes, lost in memories, “Back then, I was already live streaming back then. Relying on this face that heaven gave me and my awesome skills, my fan base grew quickly, and I earned a lot. But back then, I was blind to the world and chose a shabby place. The platform owed me wages and didn’t pay. At that time, your Auntie Song needed money for a minor surgery. I called all the leaders, but no one cared about my situation. Frustrated, I, with my temper, grabbed a bottle of wine and went to the platform’s headquarters to confront the boss.”
“And then?” Jian Heng asked.
“And then?” Qin Cheng waved his hand, “The past is hard to look back on. As soon as your Ge stepped in, a bunch of security guards pinned me down. It was my first time in the police station. Whether it was embarrassing or not is another story, but at least it broke a rumor.”
“What rumor?” Jian Heng couldn’t help but laugh.
“The tea in the police station is still quite warm,” Qin Cheng said with a nostalgic look, rubbing his stomach, “It warms you up after drinking.”
“What happened later?” Jian Heng lowered his eyelids.
“Guess?” Qin Cheng teased, “It’s time to test how well you know me. Guess how the clever student Cheng Cheng solved it.”
Jian Heng was silent for a moment, then turned his head to look at him: “You didn’t go to Uncle Gong, so you probably won’t borrow money from anyone else.”
“Correct,” Qin Cheng gave a thumbs up, “Impressive, I really didn’t ask anyone.”
Jian Heng didn’t say anything.
In Qin Cheng’s character, ‘asking for help’ is always a last resort. If he needs to seek out Gong Zhengqing, it must have been an extremely urgent situation that he cannot handle himself.
There was still time to raise money for the surgery; Qin Cheng would definitely find another way rather than immediately asking for help.
“Back then, I was somewhat famous for my live streams, and quite a few platforms extended olive branches to me. After I got out of the station, I went to another live streaming platform, signed a contract that was almost like a contract for selling myself, and got my salary in advance,” Qin Cheng said, his face showing disdain for his young and impetuous self. “I was young then, too stubborn, single-minded, and walked a straight path to the end. If it were me now, I would definitely seek help instead of stubbornly holding on. What’s the point? I ended up causing a lot of trouble, living in a sea of misery every day, and still pretending to be calm and indifferent. The sweat on my body was the water that had gone into my head back then. It wasn’t worth pitying. Tsk, I don’t even know who this tiger learned this from.”
I’m sorry for today’s delay.
[dropdown title=”List of Idiom in Chapter 62.1″]
世外桃源 (shì wài táo yuán): lit. the Peach Source outside the world; The Peach Blossom Land; Shangri-La; Arcadia; lotus land; utopia; unexpectedly fantastic place off the beaten path, usually an unspoiled wilderness of great beauty; land of idyllic beauty; fictitious land of peace; heaven of peace and happiness; retreat away from the turmoil of the world; place for taking refuge; Based on The Peach Blossom Spring (《桃花源記》) by Tao Yuanming (陶淵明). 桃花源 táo huā yuán, the Peach Blossom Spring, a hidden land of peace and prosperity; utopia.輕車熟路 (qīng chē shú lù): lit. to drive a lightweight chariot on a familiar road (idiom); to perform a task with which one is very familiar with great ease; to do sth routinely and with ease; a walk in the park; easy task; familiar path; wellpracticed; effortless; routine; smooth sailing; old hand; second nature; driving a lightly loaded vehicle along a familiar road, metaphorically speaking, something is familiar and easy.
不可收拾 (bù kě shōu shí): irremediable; unsalvageable; unmanageable; out of control/hand; hopeless; beyond control; things are so bad that they cannot be rectified or are beyond redemption.
來之不易 (lái zhī bù yì): to not come easily; to be hard-won or hard-earned; not easily come by; not be easily achieved/obtained/got.
年輕氣盛 (nián qīng qì shèng): full of youthful vigor (idiom); in the prime of youth; be young and impetuous； be young and aggressive; interpreted as being young, not knowing how to behave, and being competitive.
水深火熱 (shuǐ shēn huǒ rè): lit. the water is deep and the fire is hot; deep water and scorching fire—abyss of suffering (idiom); to be in deep distress; to live with great misery and hardship; in dire straits; in extreme misery; in a terrible situation; in a desperate plight; in a state of extreme suffering; as deep as water and as hot as fire; it is a metaphor for the extreme suffering of people’s lives, as if they were in deep water and hot fire. An idiom derived from a historical story. From Mencius: 如水益深，如火益熱，亦運而已矣。, If you make the water more deep and the fire more fierce, they will in like manner make another revolution.
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