Together Forever Chapter 2

“Teacher Gu, actually…” Those three la.s.ses were still keeping an eye on Tong Yan from a distance, and she did not know how to handle this.

There was no change at all to Gu Pingsheng’s actions, as if he had not heard anything… Wait, no, he really hadn’t heard anything.

At the same time, Zhao Yin also tapped his arm, and when he raised his eyes to look at her, she laughed, “What teacher shows such favouritism towards a student?”

Gu Pingsheng did not seem to find that there was anything inappropriate. “I’ve always played favourites. Before, when I was doing my graduate studies and had to teach undergraduates students, I was the same.”

Tong Yan shifted her gaze away and watched the streams of people coming out from one of the teaching buildings. A cla.s.s that ended at this hour of the day could only either be for a course on Intro to Maoism[1] or else Marxism[2]. Sure enough, in the hands of two male students who walked by were copies of Introduction to Maoism… She stared intensely at those two male students, successfully managing to distract herself from the situation.

That was, until she caught a glimpse of someone coming toward them from beneath the flagpole. Immediately, she broke out in a sweat. She had forgotten about that cla.s.s representative.

At the same time, Zhao Yin also spotted this student of hers and was quite surprised.

When Cla.s.s Rep Shen saw the “G.o.ddess” teacher of his faculty, he was also dumbstruck.

Glancing over at Gu Pingsheng, who was handing the newly re-rolled sketch back to her, Tong Yan very gratifyingly made a discovery: judging based on psychological poise and composure alone, Law Faculty, win!

Tong Yan took her a.s.signment from him, then immediately handed it over to Shen Heng. “Here you go. My a.s.signment.”

Only now did Zhao Yin realize what her student was here to do, and with a laugh, she noted, “Shen Heng, you’re still taking sketching this semester? I seem to recall that next semester, you’re going to London for a two-year exchange program. You shouldn’t need to take any elective courses now, right?” Teacher Zhao’s one remark hit the mark and exposed the secret.

Cla.s.s Rep Shen was evidently more embarra.s.sed than Tong Yan. Tong Yan, on the other hand, glanced very carefully over at Gu Pingsheng.

It was fortunate that Zhao Yin had been facing Cla.s.s Rep Shen when she had spoken, and it seemed he had not seen.

“Teacher Gu, I have some questions I’d like to consult you on.” She decided she would make the first move to take the situation into her own hands.

Gu Pingsheng answered with an “alright,” and, turning to Zhao Yin, said with a nod, “I’ll go first, then. If you need anything, contact me by email.”

Tong Yan merely had not wanted him to see what that boy would say, but when the two of them left together, she actually did not know what to talk about. Gu Pingsheng was not hurried, though, and simply strolled with her along the tree-lined walkway beside the lake.

There were three teaching buildings beside the lake: the Upper Building, Middle Building, and Lower Building.

The Upper Building mainly consisted of lecture-style theatres that were large and s.p.a.cious. However, although the cla.s.srooms were so open, it was unspoken knowledge throughout the entire school that the Upper Building was a place for couples to date and hangout, and n.o.body would go there to study at night. Hence, one really should not judge based on the building’s dark, unlit appearance from the exterior because in hidden and secret corners, there were actually quite a few “lively,” “vivid,” and “spicy” things taking place.

And now, Gu Pingsheng just had to choose to head into the main hall of the Upper Building.

She really wanted to hold him back, but it would be very awkward to have to explain the reason for doing so. While Tong Yan was wracking her brain, which was whirling rapidly trying to find an excuse, Gu Pingsheng walked up to a vending machine and felt around on himself for some coins. After several jingling sounds echoed out, two cans of ice-cold cola rolled out from the machine.

He turned around and handed her one of the cans before asking, “What did you want to ask about?”

“That… case study. That case study from today’s quiz.” Tong Yan tried hard to put on a smile.

“I already looked it over. You did very well.” Gu Pingsheng’s reply was concise.

Tong Yan caught sight of a faint, shadowy figure in the cla.s.sroom to her right and became thoroughly disheartened.

“Teacher Gu, why don’t we go somewhere else to talk?”

Gu Pingsheng looked at her amusedly. “What’s wrong? Is there a problem here?”

Of course there was a problem. Especially since Gu Pingsheng was wearing simply a pair of black athletic shorts, a short-sleeved shirt, and a pair of beach sandals. He looked like a student. And furthermore, a student whom people would remember after a single glance and would even have a desire to turn back for a second look… Tong Yan also eyed herself over. Why did she have to wear a white dress today, and one that was super short, too? They looked like they were here to do naughty things.

She fell silent for three seconds, and then suddenly, an idea struck her and she had an excuse. “Haven’t you heard the ghost stories about the Upper Building? They’ve been floating around for a long time.” Seeing that Gu Pingsheng seemed to be interested, she carried on, “Teacher Gu, you’ve been here for three weeks now. Have you noticed that none of the floors of the Upper Building are ever lit up with lights? Actually… someone died here before.”

That time when they had pa.s.sed by this place at night, right before Tong Yan was about to go into the restroom, in their pitch-black surroundings, Shen Yao had deliberately, in a slow voice, told her about this. She had been scared half to death, and when she came back out and discovered that Shen Yao was nowhere to be found, she had nearly started bawling.

The vending machine shed a pale, ghastly light. She surmised that Gu Pingsheng was standing in this particular spot so that he could see her speak, but it was also because of this light that she felt a chill down her back. Fortunately, not far away, the lakeside scene outside was still very bright, warm, and clear.

Inwardly rea.s.suring herself, she continued, “In some unknown year, there was a male student who saw that there were too many people in the Middle and Lower Buildings, so he brought a candlestick with him here to the Upper Building and worked alone on math problems in one of the cla.s.srooms. Because the lights aren’t ever turned on in this place except for those few days during final exams, that candle of his was especially noticeable… It gave off a faint glow… At first, two security guards came over and asked the guy why he was here. The guy said that it was quiet here. The security guards saw that he really was doing math problems so they didn’t try to stop him. A little while later, a girl came by wearing a white dress…” She was stuck for words for half a second and was terrified herself. “The girl said in a gentle voice, ‘Schoolmate, could you help me solve a math problem?’”

Gu Pingsheng gave a light laugh. “And then?”

Tong Yan gazed gloomily at him. “There was no ‘and then.’ The next day, someone came for cla.s.s and discovered the boy dead in his seat, but the candle, surprisingly, was still not completely burnt out yet. And on his body, there was a paper with a math problem and its solution written on it. The problem was one of the school’s final exam problems from ten years earlier. During that year’s finals, there was a girl student who had committed suicide by jumping into the lake because she had failed her advanced math course, and the problem on that paper was the main question that had been on that year’s exam…”

In the fastest speed possible, she finished recounting the tale, and then, unable to hold herself back, she asked, “When I heard this, I was scared to death. How come you aren’t even showing any reaction?”

Gu Pingsheng took a drink of his cola. “Medical schools are the birthplace of ghost stories. The cla.s.srooms, laundry rooms, shower rooms, washrooms, cafeterias, and even each dormitory room, each bed — all have a ghost story that can be told about them. But did someone really jump into the lake and commit suicide for not pa.s.sing advanced math? If that’s the case, then your mental stability and strength are actually relatively good.”

…… I only failed university physics four times, okay?

Finally remembering her original intention for telling the story, she said, “But I’m really scared. Could we go somewhere else to talk?”

Gu Pingsheng did not have any objections and walked with her along the corridor towards the exit. She had just breathed out in relief when all of a sudden, he halted his steps and asked in a low voice, “Did you see a shadow?”

All of Tong Yan’s little hairs instantly stood on end, but quickly, she recovered herself. Must be one of those unruly couples.

She told him softly, “Let’s hurry up and go. Maybe… maybe someone’s having an argument here.”

The problem was, there was no light where they were and he was also standing in front of her, so he had not seen her suggestion.

Right as Tong Yan established that the situation was not good, Gu Pingsheng was already striding into that cla.s.sroom. Instinctively, she followed after him… And the end result, naturally, was that she witnessed a hot, lightning-striking, earthquake-inducing kiss taking place. There, in the pale moonlight, that scene could be called a prime example of being “completely immersed” and “completely uncaring of others around.”

Seeing this, Tong Yan’s face burned up, and she stretched out her hand and tugged on Gu Pinsheng’s arm.

He turned his head to look at her, but Tong Yan only stared fixedly into his eyes. You can’t see me speak, but you can see my eyes, right?… Teacher Gu, retreat, okay?

He seemed to give a light chuckle before turning his hand over and taking her by her wrist. Just as they were about to retreat from the cla.s.sroom, a shrill, dire scream reverberated out, and it was apparent that it was because the two of them had frightened someone.

Naturally, he gave no reaction, and she apologetically turned back to explain, “Don’t be scared, don’t be scared. I’m human. A living, breathing human!”

Before she had finished speaking, however, he had already pulled her out of the cla.s.sroom.

“Don’t… don’t… don’t be scared… I’m human… A living, breathing human…”

That night, when she dejectedly returned to her dormitory, she discovered three women staring at her, all with very peculiar looks in their eyes.

“What?” She had not done anything wrong, so why was she feeling like she was afraid of being found out?

With a “hehe,” Shen Yao laughed, “What did you and Great Beauty Gu go to do in the Upper Building?”

She put on a fake smile. “How’s that even possible? Why would I go to the Upper Building?…”

Shen Yao let her have the spot in front of the computer screen to allow her to read the post from the school forum that was currently open.

Tonight, I was with my boyfriend in the Upper Building and then unexpectedly… unexpectedly, a girl student wearing a white dress just charged right in. Freaked me out! I nearly screamed until my throat burst. Most ridiculous part was, that girl even said, “Don’t be scared. I’m human. A living, breathing human”…… Hey, that girl from tonight, do you know about the Upper Building’s ghost story? Uh, please, if you don’t then go study up on some school history. Next time you see some shadows inside a cla.s.sroom, don’t come in, you know? And if you do come in, don’t be wearing a white dress, k?

Lastly, let me add, her boyfriend is honestly so hot. Didn’t get a clear look of his face but just the outline of his body is enough to make people…… totally go crazy…… And he was super chill. No matter how hard I screamed, he just held onto his girlfriend and pulled her out with him and did not look back at all……

With a pen, Shen Yao circled the two words, “held onto” and gave her a suggestive grin.

Tong Yan was put to silence, unable to respond with anything. As she sat there on her chair, no matter how they laughed and grinned at her, she simply put on an I-am-so-innocent expression on her face. Eventually, she pulled a physics textbook off the lowest bookshelf and started her depressing preparatory studying and practice homework.

The depressing part was, after she had left the Upper Building, she still had not come up with a reasonable excuse. And so, she could only say to him, “It’s just, I thought about it for a long time and decided that I do need someone to tutor me in physics…” No matter what, though, this was something she could not let these la.s.ses know about. Even though, she really, truly was innocent in all this… aaah.

Gu Pingsheng was very pleased with the fact that she, on her own accord, had accepted the extra help in physics and even left her his mobile phone number. He had nonchalantly informed her that for him, his mobile phone was used only to send and receive text messages and emails and was not for phone calls. He then told her to come find him twice a week for tutoring and that she could decide the time and place.

When he said this, it had been during the break time after the second session of cla.s.ses, and at the time, there had been a letter lying on top of the lesson plan beside his hand. On a pale pink envelope, his name was handwritten in bubble-style characters. It was apparent it was an anonymous love letter.

With a serious expression, Tong Yan had nodded at him as her eyes flicked a glance at the letter. She, too, had written this type of letter before, and in fact, one each day, continuing unbrokenly for three years. Unfortunately, the recipient of those letters was now married.

Of course, a person could not live in the past. Especially her.

During the school’s earlier years, there had once been many specially recruited students[1] for drama and theatre, and they had essentially been one of the most lovely sights of the school. This group of people had been bored from having too much time on their hands, so they had founded an a.s.sociation called Sunshine Theatre Society. And then, the a.s.sociation had been pa.s.sed down and down and down until, eventually, it was pa.s.sed into the hands of one of Tong Yan’s best friends.

Hence, when preparations began for the Welcome Celebration, which was an evening celebration to welcome new students, besides going to cla.s.ses and working her part-time job, every week, Tong Yan had also been revising the script for the stage drama and watching people rehea.r.s.e the play in the dance hall of the Student Centre. And now, one more task had been added: every week, she went to Gu Pingsheng’s office for physics tutoring.

Suddenly, her mobile phone vibrated, and she picked it up to take a look.

Gu Pingsheng: This week, I have some family matters to attend to. International Commercial Arbitration cla.s.ses have also been moved to after the National Day holiday[2]. If you don’t mind, you could come to my home for your physics lessons. TK

Tong Yan froze in surprise, staring at her mobile phone’s screen as she read the message three times. After some time, she finally placed her fingers on the keyboard and slowly typed out a few words. Very quickly, though, she deleted them. This was repeated several times before she finally decided to send the message: Since Teacher, you have things to do, physics lessons can also be moved to after the National Day holiday.

When she set down her phone, the several small groups of people inside the rehearsal hall had already started their acting, and lines of script that rose and fell in volume and expression echoed incessantly from all corners. Ai Mi, who had been beside her just a moment ago, was now already standing, arms folded across her chest, in front of several male students and was coaching them.

She watched blankly for a while. For some reason, her heart simply would not settle to allow her to carefully watch them rehea.r.s.e.

Her phone vibrated again.

Gu Pingsheng: Physics is different from law. Your foundation in it is not good, so it’s best if you don’t break the continuity between lessons. TK

But, there’s just something wrong with going to your teacher’s home, you know? However, although Tong Yan was thinking this, she could not be so frank and say it outright: It’s no problem. This week, I’ll just review and reinforce what I learned last week. I won’t goof off.

Gu Pingsheng: My home is very close to the school’s main campus in the Xuhui District. It is very convenient to get here by the campus shuttle bus. Do you have any cla.s.ses this Wednesday afternoon? TK

Tong Yan felt awkward but hurriedly wrote a reply: No. He definitely did it on purpose. Every Wednesday afternoon, the entire university did not have cla.s.s.

Gu Pingsheng: Take the 3:30 campus shuttle. Forty minutes later, I’ll be waiting for you at the library of the main campus. TK

That tone of his. It was apparent the decision had been made. She sighed inwardly and gave an answer: Ok.

Four weeks had pa.s.sed by now, and she had generally figured out his temperament — gracious, una.s.suming, polite, and without the airs one might have as a teacher. However, when it involved anything that had to do with intellectual or knowledge-related matters, he would right away resume his role as a teacher.

So serious it was ridiculous.

All of a sudden, she remembered that next week was the National Day holiday. She had planned very early on that she would go home to Beijing to see her [paternal] grandmother. He wouldn’t grab her and make her have tutoring lessons during then, would he? This was perfect, then. This Wednesday, she would go to his home and first request the time off..

His home… Tong Yan heaved another sigh.

When Wednesday actually arrived and she was sitting on the campus shuttle, she suddenly grew a little anxious, though she did not know why. Traffic was rather heavy. She drifted off to sleep until the bus arrived at the stop and a kind person beside her patted her awake. Only after she glanced at her watch did she realize that the trip had taken an hour and a half, or in other words, she was a full fifty minutes late.

Oh no. She checked her mobile phone… And tragically discovered that it was shut off. No wonder she had not received any text messages from Gu Pingsheng.

Fortunately, the location where the shuttle dropped them off was very close to the library, and after getting off and walking for a short while, she saw Gu Pingsheng’s vehicle, a white Range Rover. That day, she had ridden in it the one time. She had once not known of this particular vehicle with the long English name. Later on, however, Lu Bei had liked this brand very much, and so she had followed his suit and remembered the name.

Walking over, she saw that his head was down to look at his mobile phone, and it seemed he was replying to emails. She knocked on the car door. No answer. Seriously, so focused. Tong Yan stood there beside the car window with her eyes fixed on him. The occasional students that walked by would all throw strange glances over at her as she stood there, not saying a single word and only staring at the good-looking guy inside the car…

Gu Pingsheng suddenly lifted his head, and just like that, their gazes abruptly connected.

Only the single layer of gla.s.s of the car window separated them. Her heart gave a thump. Awkwardly, she smiled at him. “I’m sorry, Teacher Gu, I’m late.”

He smiled lightly and motioned for her to get into the vehicle.

When she had buckled her seatbelt, she finally asked curiously, “It’s not really hot today. Why didn’t you open some windows? Wouldn’t it be better if you get some fresh air circulating through?”

He handed her a bottle of water. “All year round, I keep my windows closed. City air quality isn’t good.”

Oh, a little bit of a germaphobe.

After he had actually driven out through the university gates, though, quiet fell inside the vehicle again. He was very thoughtful and had turned on some music inside the car. Furthermore, the volume was at a comfortable level, likely because he had specifically asked someone before to set it.

Listening to music that only she could enjoy, Tong Yan watched as the vehicle soon turned into a very quiet street. The street sloped off into the distance, and there were enough London plane trees lining it to provide a covering from the sun.

Both sides of the road were very clean but so unpretentious that not even a bus stop sign could be seen, and there were only one or two little shops. Only when their vehicle had driven into the community compound did she at last see the sign at the entrance. This road was called Hunan Road. Next time, when she got the chance, she really should get out of the car and walk around… So clean here. However, after stepping into his home, she truly understood what it meant to be clean.

As he bent over and pulled out a pair of slippers for her, a woman suddenly dashed out from the kitchen and, with a snowy white towel in her hand, greeted Tong Yan with a smile. “h.e.l.lo. Wait just a moment. Once I’ve tidied up the living room, you guys can come in.”

Tong Yan stared in amazement at the spotless living room before turning her eyes to watch as the beautiful woman wiped down every corner with the towel in her hand…. Were they all germaphobes in his family?

He briefly introduced them to one another. “My older cousin, Gu Pingfan. This is my student, Tong Yan.” Gu Pingsheng put on a pair of slippers. “My cousin is now a surgeon, so my slight obsession with cleanliness was pa.s.sed on from her.”

Before he had finished speaking, Gu Pingfan was already laughing and turning her head to protest, “If we’re really going to track things back, you used to be in medicine. How could it be me that pa.s.sed it on to you? I used to be in law.”

Tong Yan was once again stunned. “Used to be in law?”

It should not be overly difficult for a medical student to switch over to study law. But medicine was definitely a field that you could not simply switch into just for fun. What kind of people were they in his family, huh?…

Gu Pingsheng seemed to understand what she was thinking and explained with a smile, “She had already completed her PhD in Law, but she suddenly felt that what she had studied was very useless and she needed to do something that would help people. So then, she started all over again, studying up from the undergraduate level. This year, she just finished her master’s degree and is now doing an internship at Ruijin Hospital.”

Smiling awkwardly, Tong Yan said, “I actually think that studying law is really useless, too.” But to tell her to study medicine? Even just thinking about the words, “fresh, dripping blood” made her legs go weak.

“Yup.” Gu Pingfan had at last finished wiping all the things that could be wiped. “At the time, I had obtained admission to the bar to practice law in both New York and California, but I suddenly didn’t understand why I had taken law. Later, it suddenly dawned upon me. Healing and saving lives is the most direct way to help others.”

Tong Yan felt even more awkward but still, she politely answered, “Yes. But to have that determination to give up all those years of studying and also those licenses to practice that you had to pa.s.s a bar exam for… And then, to start studying medicine from undergrad, that must have been hard, too, right?”

Gu Pingfan’s eyes were squinted, similar to a cat. “It was no big deal. I helped introduce TK to his advising professor, so he had no choice but to teach me the basics, too. He’s the best teacher.” His cousin was very talkative, and in the end, Gu Pingsheng had to bring Tong Yan into the study before they were finally isolated from the increasing number of conversation topics.

The study was arranged and furnished in a very easy and relaxed style. The carpet was very thick and comfortable to step on.

When Gu Pingsheng first started teaching on the topic, her nerves had been taut, but gradually, her mind unconsciously began to wander. What was his reason for switching over to study law? If he wanted to be a teacher, he actually could have just stayed in medical school, and he would have achieved the same. It probably had something to do with his mother, right?… With her chin propped on her hand, her mind drifted for three minutes. And then, she had absolutely no idea what he was talking about.

The light from the sun that was nearing dusk caused the entire room to be somewhat dim. Looking at him from this particular angle, she could see from the chiseled side view of his face that there was a shallow dimple in his cheek. If a man had a round face with a dimple in it, he gave off a very fun, happy feeling. But if the man’s face was very slender and it had a little dimple like so, that truly made people feel very… So difficult to describe that feeling.

She was still trying hard to think of a suitable word when she discovered that he had tilted his head to the side and was looking long-sufferingly at her. “Tong Yan, can my face help you pa.s.s your exam?”

“Tong Yan, can my face help you pa.s.s your exam?”

Startled, she instinctively defended, “I was thinking about how to solve this problem…” However, as she mulled over his words, she could not help giggling. “Teacher Gu, maybe your face really can help me pa.s.s my exam.” In the several thousand years since the time of Goujian[3], the “beauty trap” of the Thirty-Six Stratagems[4] had always been successful.

Gu Pingsheng had an ever so brief moment of puzzlement, but shortly after, he smiled, “Your physics teacher was the fiancée of one of my good friends. Later, because one wasn’t willing to leave the country and one wasn’t willing to come back, the two of them broke up on good terms. Nothing to do with me whatsoever.”

She gave a hidden little grin. Right as she was about to say something, she saw Gu Pingsheng pick up a pen and begin speaking while he wrote out the problem. “On a smooth, horizontal surface, there is a fixed, semicircular barrier with a coefficient of friction, u. A ball with ma.s.s, m and velocity, v enters from one side along a tangent line…”

She watched as he swiftly finished writing and then stood up. Feeling slightly panic-stricken, Tong Yan asked, “Teacher Gu, you haven’t taught this to me yet, right?”

With both hands in the pockets of his jeans, he bent over slightly at the waist and smiled at her… A face so very close to hers. She could even clearly see that his eyelashes curled slightly upwards.

Her mind was having some problems processing, and she gazed blankly at his moving lips, hearing a voice say, “I want to first understand how strong your foundation is for this particular section. I’m stepping out to take care of some personal things and will come back in a bit.”

Finally, after the door had shut did she dejectedly turn back to stare at that piece of paper. This was absolutely, beyond a doubt his blatant way of getting revenge.

When Gu Pingsheng returned, the paper was still blank. She truly did not know how to solve it. Afterwards, because it was getting late, Gu Pingsheng’s cousin invited her to stay for dinner.

To be honest, the cooking skills of this former lawyer of the states of New York and California were really something that could not be praised. Tong Yan tasted a few of the dishes and then, without so much as batting an eyelid, she stretched her chopsticks over toward the easiest dish to make, shiitake stir-fried with bok choy. Coincidentally, Gu Pingsheng also happened to pick up a bok choy with his chopsticks as well. A glance pa.s.sed between the two of them as they put the food into their mouth, and then, at the same time, they both picked up their gla.s.ses of water…

Gu Pingfan was eating with great enthusiasm. “TK told me that the two of you had known each other in the past, and it was actually when he was working as an intern doctor?”

Tong Yan nodded and continued drinking more water. “We met only the one time.”

She did not know how much Teacher Gu had said, and she, naturally, was also happy to give a vague answer and let things be.

That incident was like a very private matter. She did not know whether, to Gu Pingsheng, that was the only time he had behaved uncharacteristic of himself, but to her, that was her one and only time she had ever exposed in front of someone else all those secrets that, even to this day, were otherwise hidden away.

In this day and age where morals had completed eroded away, many people simply did not even bother paying attention anymore to the existence of third parties in people’s relationships.

But what if your mother, the one who should be the most gentle and warm person, the one who was always patient and forbearing toward you, suddenly became the party who was wrecking someone else’s home and family? In a single night, the person you most depended upon from the time you only babbled and cooed and were learning to talk suddenly became the type of person that you most despised and shunned. To her, this form of hurt that had been brought upon her was destructive and devastating…

“What do your parents do?” Gu Pingfan suddenly asked her. Her smile was very warm and kind, and a dimple could also faintly be seen in her cheek. So very much like Gu Pingsheng.

Tong Yan stared at the reflection of the wall lamps in her eyes and, all of a sudden, was somewhat at a loss for words.

It was actually Gu Pingsheng who carried on the conversation. “How much of the sugar and MSG in my house did you use in your dishes today?”

Gu Pingfan looked at him quizzically. “Not much. I mostly used salt.” At this point, she suddenly clued in. “You found the food salty? TK, the things you say are crossing the line more and more…”

Later, before Tong Yan had even come up with an excuse, Gu Pingsheng had already recommended that this week, they would have only this one tutoring session and they could discuss the following week about the remainder. He had driven her back to school and had said this as she was getting out of the vehicle on the road opposite the main entrance of the university.

She nodded at him through the car window. Then, she suddenly remembered, “I’m going home for the National Day holiday. That’s next week. I definitely won’t have time for tutoring lessons.”

Gu Pingsheng looked at her. “I will be going to Beijing next week, as well. If there’s anything you need, you can contact me any time.”

Smiling awkwardly, Tong Yan replied, “I won’t. Don’t worry, I won’t disturb your holiday.”

During the National Day holiday, it was difficult to get even a single train ticket. She had asked around for help from several of her senior schoolmates, both male and female, from Beijing before she was able to obtain one standing ticket.

Fortunately, it was only fourteen hours, but when she actually stepped into the train car, she was stunned. As far as the eye could see, it was filled with people, and there were already people lying underneath the seats. With great difficulty, she managed to squeeze her way up to the train door beside the bathroom and then, putting on her thick skin, she helped herself to a spot there.

She could see that, in the bathroom, there were even two children sitting on the sink, and she decided right there that this whole night, she would not have anything to drink and just endure through it until she could get off the train.

The sound of the train rolling over its tracks was very rhythmic.

Getting off the train early in the morning, she traveled on subway and bus, persevering for another full two hours before she finally made it to her [paternal] grandmother’s home. She had just opened the door with her key when she saw the figure of that person she missed the most in the kitchen, busy preparing breakfast for her. “Yan Yan, you’re back? I just made a mixed-grain porridge.”

After suffering through hunger for an entire night, her head was now heavy and spinning as she headed over to her bed and collapsed straight onto it.

“Why are you so tired?” Grandmother asked her.

Pickled vegetables, porridge, and youtiao [savoury fried breadstick][1]. She felt she was going to die of happiness.

Youtiao (image credit)

“This time I was really lucky. I managed to buy a discount plane ticket. Only three hundred something yuan[2]. It’s just that it was an early morning flight, and I’m so sleepy from taking it…”

But, she still obediently crawled up and off her bed, and under Grandmother’s attentive gaze, she finished all the breakfast, leaving not even the tiniest bit behind, and drank a large gla.s.s of water along with it.

“Next time, I’ll take you on a plane ride, when I’ve graduated. I’m just worried you’ll get motion sickness on the plane. Oh right, and your ears will hurt, too.” Her descriptions were made with all apparent seriousness. “This morning, when the plane was landing, my ears were aching so badly.”

Grandmother listened smilingly, and every wrinkle on her face seemed to carry a sense of joy.

As she was talking away happily, Grandmother suddenly, with a mysterious expression, took hold of her hand and said, “This year’s pension amount has gone up again. I’ve saved a full ten thousand yuan for you over these last few years. Can that pay back your student loan?”

Tong Yan started in alarm. “Didn’t I already tell you? I just need to pay it back within five years after I’ve graduated. Don’t try at all to save up money for me, please. I have a part-time job right now, and I’m also helping some journalists write news articles. I’m not short on money at all.”

“I’ve already withdrawn it,” Grandmother continued in a soft voice. All of a sudden, however, she remembered the meat that was still stewing in the kitchen, and hastily, she rose to her feet while saying to her, “It’s just under the couch. Hurry, take it out and put it away.”

As she stared after the outline of Grandmother’s back, her eyes inexplicably began to sting with tears. “How about this? I’ll take it out and deposit it into the account that you and I share. We’ll wait, and if ever I need to use it, then I will.”

When she left Beijing, she had deliberately opened a bank account, taking the bank card with her but leaving the bankbook with Grandmother. Therefore, if there was an emergency situation here at home that required money, Grandmother could immediately withdraw some.

From within the kitchen came Grandmother’s sound of agreement. She walked up in front of the couch and felt around under it for the secret spot used to store money. As a child, she had always been rummaging around everywhere and was well acquainted with this place for money storage.

But when she held the envelope in her hand, she suddenly detected that there was something wrong. The envelope and the contents within were very thin. Even the six thousand yuan of tuition she paid every school year was several times thicker than this… A notion flashed across her mind, and she abruptly felt as if someone had suddenly gripped the bottommost tip of her heart.

She dared not breathe, dared not move. She did not dare speak out the actual situation and could only pretend to nonchalantly ask, “These last few days, did my dad come visit?”

“Yes, and he even deliberately helped me change out the cooking gas tank.” There was an inconcealable joy in Grandmother’s voice.

Sure enough, it was him.

Tong Yan stared blankly at the envelope. This was not the first time, but this time, the amount was so large. Where am I going to get enough to make up for it?

Many jumbled thoughts were continuously flashing into her head, and all of a sudden, she felt as if her strength was drained.

Exhaustion of an entire night rushed up once again over here. She wanted only to cry. No matter how she tried, she could not stop her nose from tingling. As her vision started to blur with tears, Grandmother stepped out from the kitchen.

Tong Yan hastily stuffed the envelope into her schoolbag, pulled out a facial tissue, and pretended to wipe her nose with it, and soon, her tears were wiped away. “Why do I feel like I’m coming down with a cold?…” Standing, she quickly added, “It’s not safe to leave so much money in the home. I’m going to head out right now to deposit it.”

“There’s no hurry.” The voice sounding out behind her was cut off and left inside, behind the closed door.

She waited until she had walked to a far away bus stop before halting beneath the bus stop sign, opening the envelope, and carefully counting the amount inside — only two thousand yuan. Her tuition was normally paid for by student loans, and her living expenses came from the income from her part-time job and writing news articles. After accounting for her day-to-day spending, she had only managed to save two thousand yuan. So, in other words, she was still short a full six thousand yuan.

Six thousand yuan. This sum had to be deposited somehow. Although Grandmother knew how terribly disappointing her son was, she still carried a fanciful dream in her heart that hoped that one day, he would amend his ways.

There were an especially large number of people at the bus stop. Many were parents with their children, spending the National Day holiday together in a bustling, lively atmosphere. As the bus would pull into the stop, many fathers would pick their young child up into their arms, and some would even sit them on their heads, for fear that the crowd would squash their darling baby… Tong Yan stood in that spot and watched for a long time. She had already lost track of how many buses had pulled in since she was here.

At last, she took her mobile phone in hand and stared down irresolutely at a list of more than twenty names.

Even such a good friend as Shen Yao did not know about her family situation. If she was in Shanghai right now, it would be easier since she could simply say that she did not have enough time to ask her family for the money… But right now, she was in Beijing, so she did not even have an excuse she could use to borrow money from her cla.s.smates.

In the end, after fixing her eyes on that list for a long time, it came down to only two people: Lu Bei and Gu Pingsheng.

One was a person who, without ever asking for a reason, had always agreed to every single one of her requests.

One was a person who had unwittingly seen some very true scenes of her life.

However, from when Lu Bei had married, she had vowed that she would never see him again. Regardless of the reason why their chance to be together had slipped by them, she had a very strong sense of and demand for pureness of morals, and she would never allow herself to do anything that might break up someone’s home and marriage. And so, in reality, the only remaining option was Gu Pingsheng.

Hesitantly, she sent him a text message: Teacher Gu, are you busy? I would like to ask you for a favour.

Very quickly, he sent her a text message in reply: Go ahead. TK

Two simple words plus his name signed at the end. No emotion could be discerned from them. They actually did not know each other all that well, and if she out the blue asked to borrow money…… She inhaled deeply and then wrote her reply: I was hoping to borrow some money. Only six thousand, that’s all I need. It’s urgent.

A long time pa.s.sed and still he did not return her message. Tong Yan suddenly very much regretted her action. Why did she ask her teacher to borrow money? But the question had already been put forth, and it was too late to retract it. Uneasily, she stared at her mobile phone, praying continuously in her mind, “Teacher Gu, please don’t be offended. I really had no other choice.”

All of a sudden, her mobile phone rang. Gu Pingsheng was calling?

Tong Yan was somewhat stunned at this. She answered the call and was about to say h.e.l.lo when she immediately remembered that he would not be able to hear her. She then heard Gu Pingsheng on the other end of the line speaking to someone in English. It sounded as if the person was beside him.

Very soon, he spoke into the phone, “Tong Yan, my apologies. I was talking to one of the elder members of my family just now. Text your address to my phone. I’m driving over right now to find you.”

His voice was a little hurried, but it was still as warm and gentle as before. So warm and gentle it made you want to cry.