Chapter 60: He’s still having someone watch you?
As for Zheng Yucheng’s not-so-glorious overt scheme—it was somewhat effective.
The trouble he resolved for Chen Zeng was essentially a difficult problem posed to Chen Wengang. This forced favor indeed made it very difficult for Chen Wengang to consider handing his resignation to Zheng Bingyi in the near future. Taking an advantage and then leaving immediately would inevitably make him appear ungrateful.
With the summer holidays ending and the first day of the autumn semester arriving, Chen Wengang took his student ID to register and got his fourth-year stamp at the academic affairs office.
He was a senior now.
When he came out, Huo Niansheng was waiting outside, hands in his pockets, the corners of his mouth curving up at him—the very picture of a suave gentleman.
He reached out a hand. Chen Wengang placed his hand in it, and they walked down the steps together.
When they reached a crowded area, they consciously let go.
The campus was bustling with activity.
Freshman registration had started two days early. At first glance, vibrant, youthful faces filled with anticipation for tomorrow could be seen everywhere.
Groups of accompanying parents and relatives held campus maps, comparing them to the surroundings while asking for directions at every turn.
Huo Niansheng waited as Chen Wengang finished pointing the way for another freshman. “By the way, about your house…”
“Is there a problem?” Chen Wengang turned to look at him.
“No. I was just wondering if we could plant something in that flowerbed.”
“I think we used to have night-blooming jasmine… but I heard it releases harmful gases at night, so we dug it up.”
“How about Chinese roses? Would that be a bit too cliché?”
“Cliché is better. They say good flowers don’t bloom for long; I don’t like that. I prefer seeing flowers all year round.”
“Then Chinese roses it is,” Huo Niansheng said, speaking as if he were moving in right away. “We can also get a few pots of mint to repel mosquitoes and bugs.”
He took long strides. As they walked, he realized the person beside him had fallen behind. Huo Niansheng turned around. “What’s wrong?”
Chen Wengang snapped back to reality and hurried to catch up with a smile. “I was just wondering what color roses we should plant.”
Actually, sometimes he still suspected that this current time was fake—that Huo Niansheng was alive and walking right beside him.
Right here under the sun, the two of them walking side by side, even discussing what flowers to plant in the future.
There had never been a better time in his life than right now.
But whatever they planted would require someone to take care of it, and cohabitation was an issue they actually hadn’t discussed yet.
Chen Wengang suddenly heard Huo Niansheng say again, “There’s a shop you might like. Yu Shanding found it for you.”
His interest was piqued. “So mysterious. What do they sell?”
Huo Niansheng kept him in suspense. “I’ll take you there later to check it out yourself.”
“Can’t you reveal just a little bit to satisfy my curiosity?”
Someone suddenly shouted from behind, “Chen Wengang!”
The freshman registration work wasn’t entirely finished yet. The square was partitioned with water barriers to create different channels for various colleges. The staff, composed of both teachers and students, uniformly wore red vests. You Ying, wearing one of those vests, grabbed the person near the edge of the square. “Don’t go, I was just looking for you.”
Huo Niansheng took the initiative to step aside. Chen Wengang asked, “Is there something you need help with?”
You Ying said, “The freshmen have just arrived on campus, and the school is organizing orientation activities, putting together a dialogue between new and old students. The upperclassmen need to provide a group of people to give advice and share experiences about university life with the newbies. Are you up for it? Oh, by the way, the format is a live stream.”
“A public live stream?”
“Yes, every freshman can watch it. It’s more convenient than an offline event, and it serves as good publicity for the school to the general public.”
Chen Wengang thought about it and agreed. “Should be fine. But why did you think of finding me?”
You Ying suddenly flashed a somewhat menacing smile. “To tell you the truth, you have to do it even if you can’t. This activity was just proposed recently. Where am I supposed to find suitable people on such short notice? The advising teacher came up with the idea that all of last semester’s Campus Star candidates have to participate. You guys got the spotlight, so now it’s your turn to make a contribution to our alma mater, right?”
Hearing this, Chen Wengang laughed too. “What about you?”
You Ying said, “Don’t worry, I’ll be suffering with you guys. I’m organizing the event and guest-hosting—that’s enough contribution, right? —Anyway, I won’t say more, that’s the gist of it. Remember to send me any of your personal social media handles later. We need to promote you guys.”
Chen Wengang agreed.
Before leaving, she suddenly remembered something. “Right, I saw Qi Tongzhou registering the day before yesterday. Is he okay?”
Chen Wengang hadn’t seen Qi Tongzhou in a while. “What could be wrong with him?”
You Ying shook her head. “Nothing much, just showing concern for a junior. He didn’t seem in very high spirits when I saw him.”
Chen Wengang cast a calm, unreadable glance at Huo Niansheng. “I’ll find an opportunity to ask someone about it.”
The place Huo Niansheng mentioned was more of a joint exhibition hall than a shop.
At the entrance hung a sign with white characters on a black background: “Nostalgia Market.” Chen Wengang stopped, taking a curious look, but Huo Niansheng was already pulling him inside. Colorful glass cups, desktop sewing machines, twin-lens reflex film cameras, aluminum thermoses, embroidered pillowcases with mandarin ducks playing in the water…
Chen Wengang immediately burst into laughter. “What was Boss Yu thinking? I’m surprised he even found this.”
Huo Niansheng put his arm around his shoulders. “Let’s go. Let’s see what good stuff they have.”
Chen Wengang let himself be led through two rows of stalls. “These are all new. I thought this was a flea market.”
Huo Niansheng said, “It’s just a gimmick to make money. If you’re having fun, we’ll look around; if not, we can head back.”
Chen Wengang had no reason to be unhappy. At the very least, there were merchants out there catering to your sense of nostalgia, creating products to humor you. They wandered over to the toy section, which was much more fun than the other areas. There were game consoles, Tamagotchis, and colorful character trading cards.
He spotted a green patent-leather mechanical frog, picked it up, wound it twice, and bent down to place it on the ground to watch it hop.
He didn’t see Huo Niansheng standing behind him, watching him with a gentle gaze.
Nearby, a very familiar figure was squatting on the ground, studying a set of comic books. When Chen Wengang turned his head, the person also looked back—it was Qi Tongzhou, whom You Ying had been concerned about. He wiped his hands on his clothes and stood up in a flurry. “Wengang, what a coincidence.”
Chen Wengang also braced his knees and stood up straight. “It is a coincidence. Did you come here alone?”
He scratched his head. “I was wandering around nearby with a friend and just happened to come across this market.”
Not having seen him for a long time, Qi Tongzhou stared at him a bit hungrily.
Chen Wengang stepped back slightly, out of politeness. “Where’s your friend?”
“He went to the restroom.”
“Wengang, come here.” Huo Niansheng’s voice rang out, lingering like a ghost. “See if this is the Chinese checkers game you were talking about.”
“You want to buy this to play?” Chen Wengang took the box from his hands. “Don’t you think it’s a bit childish?”
Huo Niansheng leaned in to tease him: “What do you think?”
With just a few words, this playboy coaxed a bright smile from Chen Wengang. Qi Tongzhou couldn’t stand the sight of it, and knowing it was being done deliberately for his benefit, he couldn’t help but feel a flare of anger. He took a deep breath, but for some reason, the anger suddenly fizzled out.
Just then, his friend returned.
Mu Qing walked over. He first dutifully called out “Huo-ge,” stood next to Qi Tongzhou, and then looked at Chen Wengang.
Suddenly, he smiled amicably. “What have you been busy with lately? We clearly live together, but I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages.”
Chen Wengang also smiled but didn’t answer.
Mu Qing kept staring at him. “By the way, we’re both going on the school live stream together. Did you hear about that?”
Chen Wengang replied politely, “I just received the notice this morning at school.”
Mu Qing looked very pleased. “That’s good. You know, I was actually worried that being on camera like this would be awkward.” He tilted his chin up slightly. “Having someone I know there makes me feel much more at ease. When the time comes, with a Campus Star like you leading the charge, the rest of us will look good by association.”
As his words fell, he saw Huo Niansheng staring at him with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, a profoundly meaningful crease forming at the corner of his mouth.
Mu Qing’s heart suddenly began pounding wildly. He had the distinct illusion of being gutted wide open.
He unconsciously fell silent.
Huo Niansheng quickly and uninterestingly looked away.
It was Qi Tongzhou, completely oblivious to the undercurrents, who offered comfort. “Don’t be nervous, it’s just a live stream. I’ll help you guys record it when the time comes. Just like I said, ordinary freshmen definitely aren’t as cool as I am—everyone I meet right after entering the school is a popular figure.”
Except, even after saying this, his spirits still didn’t seem very high.
The four of them parted ways, each harboring their own thoughts.
Only when they were far away did Chen Wengang lean close to Huo Niansheng’s ear and ask, “He’s never provoked you. Why do you look like you hate him more than I do?”
“Who?”
“Who do you think?”
Huo Niansheng whispered in his ear, “You could tell even that?”
Chen Wengang tilted his head to look at him. “If it’s you, I can tell.”
Huo Niansheng grasped his hand, lowered his head, and kissed his knuckles. “Then I really need to be careful not to let you see through me.”
Chen Wengang teased with a smile, “Are there actually times when Young Master Huo is afraid of being seen through?”
Huo Niansheng raised an index finger to “shush” him. “Careful now, I’m marking this down.”
Chen Wengang looked back at Qi Tongzhou from a distance, and Huo Niansheng turned to look with him.
While walking, he hesitated for a moment, then offered a faint smile. “I actually know the reason why he’s unhappy. Isn’t Qi Tongzhou volunteering at Director Liu’s place? There’s a child with osteogenesis imperfecta whose condition isn’t very good. I don’t think he’s ever experienced something like this.”
Huo Niansheng looked at him upon hearing this. “And what’s the meaning behind telling me this? Worried I’ll get jealous?”
Chen Wengang shot him a sidelong glance. “So, did you get jealous or not?”
Huo Niansheng surprisingly sounded reasonable. “I know it’s hard on you too. Why would I be jealous over something like this?”
Chen Wengang paused, holding the Chinese checkers box, and looked down at the colorful cover.
Huo Niansheng smiled at him. “Osteogenesis imperfecta, right? I know about it. It’s supposed to be incurable.”
Chen Wengang nodded. “You know, many of them are abandoned precisely because they’re sick. All sorts of illnesses. Some are congenital, and some were simply incurable to begin with. Sometimes, working in this field, all you can do is your best and leave the rest to fate. These kinds of partings are inevitable.”
Huo Niansheng rested his chin on his shoulder. “What about you? Are you sad?”
Chen Wengang said, “I’ve just seen a bit more of it than he has.”
Huo Niansheng hugged his shoulder and didn’t continue the conversation. There were many people in the exhibition hall, coming and going, some browsing and some buying. A gaggle of kids ran around chattering in the game area. The overhead air conditioner hummed loudly but failed to provide enough cool air; a chubby man still had fine beads of sweat glittering on the tip of his nose. As they brushed past each other, he widened his eyes and looked back. Huo Niansheng met his gaze.
The man shrank his neck back, waited for his wife and kids to catch up, and mumbled something as if he had just discovered a new continent.
The wife also sneaked a look back, shook her head, and then took the child’s hand. The family set off toward the toy section.
A week after the school term started, the child with osteogenesis imperfecta passed away at the children’s hospital. The orphanage held a small funeral.
Both Chen Wengang and Huo Niansheng attended. Qi Tongzhou and a few familiar volunteers were also there.
Although his initial motives hadn’t been entirely pure, Qi Tongzhou had gradually started doing real work there. Even his older brother formally changed clothes to accompany him, speaking very appropriately. He shook hands with Director Liu and Chen Wengang, expressing his gratitude to them for guiding his younger brother to do meaningful work.
After the farewell ceremony, Qi Tongzhou’s brother went off to the side to speak with Huo Niansheng.
Qi Tongzhou hesitated for a long time before finally walking over and asking Chen Wengang, “Can I shake your hand?”
Chen Wengang smiled at him. “I don’t usually say sappy things like this, but Director Liu praised you for making a lot of progress.”
He extended his hand and shook Qi Tongzhou’s.
After that, the new semester officially kicked off.
Various orientation activities rolled out as scheduled. During the live stream, Qi Tongzhou attended the event in person.
The school’s approach was generally conservative. It was just a standard dialogue held in a lecture hall. After it ended, Chen Wengang and You Ying stepped off the stage laughing and chatting. Qi Tongzhou approached, holding a celebratory bouquet. He hesitated for a second, then handed it to the hard-working You Ying.
Mu Qing also came down from the stage, maintaining his aloof demeanor, not eager to interact with anyone, and prepared to leave after a quick goodbye.
However, he was enthusiastically stopped by his classmates. “Don’t anyone leave yet. We applied for a dinner budget from the school. Let’s go reward ourselves first.”
The entire group then marched in a grand procession toward the school gates.
Qi Tongzhou was also invited along. On the way, he looked back several times, slowed his pace to fall to the rear, and patted Chen Wengang’s shoulder.
He lowered his voice. “Is someone following us?”
Chen Wengang stopped walking and also glanced back. “It’s fine. Huo Niansheng told him to come.”
Qi Tongzhou was startled. “He actually hired someone to monitor you?”
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Thank you for the chapter!