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Chapter 63: Do you still feel indebted to anyone?
“So, in the end, what’s the decision on how to deal with her?” Huo Niansheng made an “oh” sound, dipped his chopsticks in ginger vinegar, and put them in his mouth. The two of them were on a date, dining at Wanghai Restaurant, with two piles of discarded seafood shells on the table.
“Watch your words; don’t make it sound like we’re going to kill or set fire to anything,” Chen Wengang said. “But anyway, she’s hired.”
“You guys are really charitable,” Huo Niansheng said, elongating his tone.
“It’s a coincidence. Ma Wen said the same thing,” Chen Wengang said. “You two really are in sync.”
“That bearded guy? Be careful with your words, Teacher Chen. By the way, who am I in sync with?”
Chen Wengang chuckled, and Huo Niansheng plucked a piece of fried crab from the plate and tossed it into his bowl.
The middle-aged woman was named Jiang Wanxia, raising a daughter named Jiang Cai alone. Because of her situation, the school management team and the foundation even held a meeting specifically to discuss her situation for an entire afternoon. It was indeed troublesome. Ma Wen shook his head, saying, “If we were running a company, we could say ‘we’re not a charity.’ Guess what? We actually are a charity.”
People neither cried nor laughed. Finally, Luo Suwei nodded, “Let’s give her a month’s trial period and see how it goes.”
This outcome was the result of a narrow vote. But it was clear that it was driven by sympathy. The school had already hired other janitors, so they didn’t really need Jiang Wanxia. Allowing her to stay was just because they saw she had no other options.
She mentioned she had rented a small attic with her daughter, which the landlord had just taken back. They couldn’t afford the rent anymore, so the school temporarily allocated a storeroom for them to stay in. Otherwise, the mother and daughter would have had nowhere to go.
Chen Wengang didn’t find it surprising, but he couldn’t help but sigh. The crowded storage room reminded him of his own shelter in the dock area in a previous life, where he had lived with leaks and drafts. Apart from having a roof over his head, there wasn’t much difference from being a vagrant. It was Huo Niansheng who had appeared and taken him away back then.
As for Jiang Wanxia, she settled in with her daughter for now, but they didn’t know where they would be tomorrow.
Chen Wengang took a sip of tea. “She applied for all the assistance available, but for someone at her stage of kidney failure, she still needs a transplant. Everyone knows the chances are slim, so nobody wants to be the one pushing her to a dead end.”
Huo Niansheng also took a sip. “Do you need help finding a donor for her?”
Chen Wengang shook his head. “She’s waiting in line herself. But they say she’s been waiting for years.”
Huo Niansheng asked, “What about her daughter?”
Chen Wengang hesitated. “It’s not polite to pry. But think about it; even if there’s a match, how could a mother bear to do it?”
Huo Niansheng just raised an eyebrow, casually smiled, and didn’t press further.
Chen Wengang hadn’t expected him to show so much concern for this middle-aged woman with this series of questions.
It seemed to Huo Niansheng that her appearance was too coincidental, but in the end, everything boiled down to intuition. Admittedly, the wealthy often had their own troubles, and they had to tread carefully. However, no matter how you looked at it, she was just a weary mother nearing the end of her rope.
After dinner, they strolled along the street and soon arrived at the Lu family’s place.
Chen Wengang was there for a visit. Lu Chenlong wasn’t in the shop; he was at home packing a travel bag.
Xiao Bao came out with a small backpack on his back. “Look, an elephant!”
During moments of regular intervention, his speech flowed more smoothly, but—
Xiao Bao chewed on his hand, thought for a moment, and burst into laughter. “I’m silly!”
Chen Wengang paused, then squatted down and took his hand out. “You’re not silly.” He looked in another direction. “Who called him that?”
Lu Chenlong squatted on the ground, checking a list: “Change of clothes, water bottle, tissue roll, wet wipes…” They were all things used in the training room. He glanced up helplessly. “Two days ago, we met a jerk on the road… Forget it; I don’t want to talk about it. He’s already picking it up again.”
Huo Niansheng leaned against the door, and Lu Chenlong glanced at him awkwardly.
This person wasn’t ordinary wherever he stood, even harboring danger. To be honest, Lu Chenlong didn’t know why. Whenever Chen Wengang stirred up trouble, it wasn’t something simple like a peach blossom. It was particularly challenging. The former Master Zheng was troublesome enough, and now this one.
He opened his mouth to explain, “Wengang helped us secure a spot at their new school. He’s starting tomorrow.”
Huo Niansheng smiled and said, “I wish you success. If you need anything next time, feel free to contact me directly.”
Lu Chenlong thanked him politely and sized him up. Huo Niansheng was taking Xiao Bao from Chen Wengang’s arms. With his strong arms, he lifted the child high, but Xiao Bao wasn’t still, kicking and shoving around, leaving two marks on Huo Niansheng’s chest.
Lu Chenlong reached out and took him back, scolding sternly, “Look what you’ve done! You do these good deeds every day!”
Huo Niansheng didn’t seem the least bit upset. “It’s okay.”
After some small talk, Chen Wengang said, “We won’t disturb you anymore. We came for dinner today and checked on how you’re doing and if there’s anything we can help with.”
Lu Chenlong insisted, “No need. Isn’t your place still under ventilation?”
Chen Wengang nodded. “Yes, we were planning to go check it out.”
At the doorstep, Chen Wengang took out his keys to unlock the door.
Huo Niansheng also had a set of keys from Chen Wengang, given to him when he helped tidy up the room.
As they entered, Chen Wengang felt a bit nervous. In the past few days, Huo Niansheng had sent him some photos, partial ones, and he didn’t feel much about them. After all, it was just a place to live, and as long as it was livable, it didn’t matter. This was the first time he came to see it in person, and only at the door did he suddenly realize he should have some expectations.
He turned on the lights.
The light spread softly.
The old furniture carried a sense of familiarity and warmth, like some elders who had watched him grow up, quietly leaning against the walls. As for the overall layout, it was quite different from what he remembered. But this new arrangement was better than before, with a more logical flow and modern appliances. Styles nowadays couldn’t stay the same as ten or twenty years ago, and there was no need for people to live in the past.
Chen Wengang looked around and found it somewhat refreshing.
Huo Niansheng followed behind him.
Chen Wengang was truly interested. He went upstairs, where the staircase had been replaced with a new one, sturdy and no longer creaking. There used to be an old skylight in the attic, now replaced with bright new glass, allowing ample light to come in. Some cabinets and boxes were placed along the walls for storage.
Under the window were two short iron reclining chairs, surrounded by a circle of sofa beds.
The recliners were close to the ground, facing the skylight, and the sofa bed was soft like a cushion. Lying inside felt like being in a cradle.
Chen Wengang was satisfied.
He felt so comfortable that he could fall asleep at any time. “If I had this secret hideaway when I was a kid, I would have gone crazy long ago.”
Huo Niansheng sat next to him, his arm resting on the armrest, and asked with a smile, “Are you that easily satisfied?”
Chen Wengang turned over, facing Huo Niansheng. He lifted his gaze, his eyelashes as soft as butterfly wings covering his eyelids, casting shadows on his cheeks as he blinked. “You don’t understand. Having a shelter overhead gives a sense of security.”
“What kind of security?”
“I don’t know how to explain it. It feels like as long as this place exists, I won’t be homeless.”
Huo Niansheng chuckled softly, seeming to acknowledge Chen Wengang’s unspoken concern about homelessness, but he didn’t say anything about it.
He raised his hand and lightly tapped Chen Wengang, who understood and shifted over, making space for him.
The two squeezed into the recliner together.
The attic’s light wasn’t like streetlights. Occasionally, cars passed by on the street, and sounds of pianos, TVs, kitchenware, and voices disciplining children faintly echoed from the surrounding houses. But everything seemed muffled, as if heard from a very distant place, through layers of cover.
Chen Wengang lay on Huo Niansheng’s chest, his left arm around his waist, nearly on the verge of falling asleep.
It wasn’t until Huo Zhenfei’s phone call came through, “You’ve been working hard lately, but the current situation is more favorable for us…”
The distance was close enough that even without being put on speaker, he could clearly hear the voice from the other end. Chen Wengang started to prop himself up, but Huo Niansheng pressed him back down, continuing to lie on top of him.
Huo Zhenfei continued, “Grandfather’s health is improving a bit. You need to be a bit more careful and try not to let the media talk nonsense… Jason and the others are repurchasing stocks from the secondary market. No news is the best news.”
Huo Niansheng responded with a couple of “hmms” without expressing too much opinion.
After Huo Zhenfei hung up, Chen Wengang regained clarity. “What’s the matter with you? Aren’t you afraid I heard everything?”
Huo Niansheng shifted from discussing business matters to teasing, “When have I ever been afraid you’d eavesdrop? Unless you’re planning to sell me out.”
Chen Wengang frowned at him, then slowly relaxed his brows and chuckled.
Huo Niansheng nudged him up, “Well, that’s a good reason. When dealing with traitors, there’s no need to hold back.”
As he spoke, he started to playfully move his hands and feet. However, Chen Wengang suddenly recalled something, “Come to think of it, I haven’t really done anything for you.”
Huo Niansheng lowered his head to look at him, “Is that so? I never noticed.”
Chen Wengang paused, seemingly reminiscing, and smiled somewhat ruefully, “You’ve always been the one giving me things, coming to me on your own, arranging this and that. But I don’t know any of your friends or what you usually do.”
Huo Niansheng patted his back and said, “There will be opportunities in the future. Li Hongqiong, for example? As for others—let it go. There aren’t many decent people among them. Do you still want to meet someone like Huo Jingsheng?”
Chen Wengang smiled, and for a moment, the attic fell into silence. He found Huo Niansheng’s hand and placed it against his own, as if comparing sizes. Chen Wengang interlocked their fingers one by one, until they were tightly clasped. Then he lowered his head and lightly pressed his lips against the back of Huo Niansheng’s hand.
Huo Niansheng slid his other hand from Chen Wengang’s back to his waist, applying just enough pressure to feel its weight.
Suddenly, Chen Wengang called out to him, “Niansheng.”
Huo Niansheng looked at him attentively.
***
After the Huoren Special Education School started its first semester, Chen Wengang became more frequent in his visits, spending almost all his free time there.
Firstly, he had a lot of work to do, and secondly, Lu Chenlong’s brother, Xiao Bao, attended school there—even though the school was a targeted rehabilitation institution for welfare institutes, with no parents and only one brother as a guardian. Considering the practical difficulties they faced and Chen Wengang’s connections, they managed to make a special application and secured admission.
Lu Chenlong would drop his brother off in the morning, hand over the training bag to the teacher, and then pick him up in the evening.
Chen Wengang walked to the back door of the training room and looked inside through the glass. The classroom was spacious and bright, with colorful wallpapers adorning the walls.
With just a glance, he saw Xiao Bao and four or five other children undergoing rehabilitation training under the guidance of teachers and assistants.
Three girls and two boys, each with varying degrees of intellectual challenges, abandoned by their parents, were hoping to bloom amidst the cracks in the pavement.
Chen Wengang recorded a short video and sent it to Lu Chenlong before returning to his office to work.
On this particular day, Joskin came to the school as a consultant. Chen Wengang met him, and after discussing business matters, they decided to have lunch together.
As they chatted at the table, Joskin asked, “Have your previous issues improved at all? Both in terms of emotions and interpersonal relationships?”
Chen Wengang chuckled, “Don’t worry, much better now. Before, I was just not busy enough. When you’re busy, you don’t have time to worry about such things.”
Josquin also laughed, “Do you still feel indebted to anyone?”
Chen Wengang pleaded, “Everyone has their moments of obsession. If you could spare me some face, let’s not dwell on it.”
As they talked, they placed the trays back on the shelf, and suddenly, they heard a loud commotion outside.
Then, a slightly sharp female voice came from the back of the building, followed by more voices, clearly arguing about something.
Joskin looked confused for a moment, while Chen Wengang, along with the cafeteria staff, wore expressions of resignation.
Seeing Joskin’s confusion, Chen Wengang suggested, “Let’s go check it out. Maybe we can help resolve the argument.”
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