DLRAS Chapter 79

Chapter 79: If there was only pain, why ask?

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Out of the corner of his eye, Huo Niansheng watched Chen Wengang. Chen Wengang wasn’t looking at him; his head was lowered, his slender fingers struggling with the chocolate packaging.

The box had “Pink Sweetheart” printed on the cover. Torn open, it revealed individual white cubes. He bit one in half; beneath the crispy milk shell lay strawberry chocolate. Chen Wengang then popped a piece into Huo Niansheng’s mouth.

Huo Niansheng gripped the steering wheel, staring straight ahead as the rich, smooth sweetness melted in his mouth.

“Where are you staying tonight?” he suddenly asked.

“I should go home.” Chen Wengang hesitated for a second. “Uncle Lin thinks I’m running away from home.”

“Alright then.”

The steering wheel turned in another direction. Huo Niansheng watched Chen Wengang ring the doorbell at the Zheng residence.

Then Chen Wengang took two steps back, checked his watch, and asked if he wanted to come inside for dinner together.

For some reason, Huo Niansheng recalled what Huo Zhenfei had asked—whether he had a fixed place to eat his three meals a day.

“Go on in,” he said. “Remember to take a shower later tonight.”

“Drive slowly,” Chen Wengang smiled, his eyes curving into crescents.

By the time he returned to the vicinity of Yunding Mansion, the sky had turned dark. The entire CBD commercial district was brilliantly lit, the bright river of stars masking the countless companies still working overtime.

The apartment, however, was pitch black. Huo Niansheng turned on the lights, and the room was instantly filled with a sense of cold desolation.

It seemed hard to imagine that a person like him could feel lonely or isolated.

He walked to the dining room and tossed the chocolate Chen Wengang had left behind onto the table. He received a message from one of his fair-weather friends, inviting him out for a drink.

Only then did Huo Niansheng remember that it had been a while since he had shown his face in those neon-lit venues of debauchery.

Many people were spreading rumors that he had “tamed his heart” now, but today was a special occasion: Young Master Tian was throwing a bachelor party.

His driver, Old Li, dropped the boss off at the Rose 1917 Nightclub, a place he hadn’t visited in ages.

The nightclub was a legitimate business venue, but it also turned a blind eye to some borderline entertainment. The host had booked the entire place. Strippers covered in silver sequins twisted and posed suggestively around poles, the transparent tempered glass stage littered with colored glitter.

Huo Niansheng sat leisurely at the bar. No one came to bother him, and he bothered no one, looking indifferently toward the direction of the crowd’s cheering.

Amidst the jeering of a group of cronies, the groom-to-be was passionately kissing a woman in a red dress.

From the back, he couldn’t see her face. He only saw that she was wearing massive earrings, her halter dress exposing a large expanse of fleshy back, and through the gaps in the crowd, her bare feet in stiletto heels.

They kissed with wild abandon, like it was a final revelry before tomorrow arrived.

Half an hour later, the groom-to-be scurried over near him, gesturing for those around him to lower their voices as he spoke on a video call—

“There’s absolutely no inappropriate entertainment, look, it’s all just my bros, you know them. Women? What women, at most there are a few dates they brought along. Stop talking nonsense, that’s impossible, you’re just overthinking things.”

Checking up on him, the fiancée counted the people through the camera one by one. The crowd cheekily chimed in, calling her “sister-in-law” and telling her not to worry.

Huo Niansheng slanted his gaze, sitting in the background frame. Withdrawing his mocking look, he placed his glass on the bar.

The bartender handed him a fresh “Godfather,” mixed with whiskey and amaretto.

The friend who had invited him finally remembered to look for Huo Niansheng. “No way, you come out just to drink here like a lonely ghost? I heard you were trying to be a respectable family man, don’t tell me it’s actually true.” The friend pointed his nose at the strippers on stage. “Not even tipping a single buck, so stingy?”

Huo Niansheng pushed a folded corner of a banknote toward the bartender. “Have fun.”

“Hey!”

Driver Old Li received a message and pulled the car up to the main entrance five minutes later.

Huo Niansheng got in and closed the door.

Old Li was just about to make a U-turn when he suddenly heard the order: “Go to Qifu Street.”

Without a word, the Rolls-Royce headed toward the old city district.

Qifu Street was exactly where Huo Niansheng had been during the day; it was the street where the old Mr. Chen lived. He didn’t give a precise location, so Old Li cruised slowly down the street, as if taking a joyride. Huo Niansheng told him to slow down. The car windows were wide open, letting in a constant stream of dry, hot wind.

Suddenly, Huo Niansheng said, “Stop the car.”

Old Li looked out the window. The river water was pitch black, and clusters of reeds obscured a rough concrete structure diagonally ahead.

Huo Niansheng opened the car door. As if guided by a clear objective, he slid down a dirt slope and walked toward that abandoned bridge underpass.

During the day, Huo Niansheng had felt there should be a bridge in this spot, yet he had never seen it.

Chen Wengang’s voice rang out again: “It’s in the other direction. We already drove past it.”

Huo Niansheng drew closer and closer. In the darkness, it looked like an unknown beast lying in wait.

The summer grass was deep green, and crickets hopped away from his leather shoes.

The dense sense of déjà vu of a replayed yesterday crept up his spine, and torn memories stirred, waiting to attack him. But it wasn’t exactly the same. Huo Niansheng had some feelings; he could even remember the crackling sound of stepping on dead leaves.

A dim streetlamp cast a bit of light onto one end of the underpass; the other end was pitch black and bottomless.

Now, he stood beneath the bridge underpass, gazing inward with desperate resolve.

Aside from himself, there was no one.

Some trash was piled against the wall, spray-painted randomly. Over time, graffiti covered the walls. Nearby, he could make out an “I love you,” followed by various shapes, names, and obscenities.

Not understanding what was going on, Old Li followed him down the slope.

His boss stood aloof and solitary in the tall grass, gazing in an unknown direction, as tall and straight as a mountain peak.

Huo Niansheng turned his peach-blossom eyes sideways, casting a dark look at him. “Got a cigarette?”

Old Li froze for a moment, hurriedly patting his pockets. He offered the pack of cigarettes. Huo Niansheng pulled one out and placed it between his lips.

“Mr. Huo, is there a problem here?” Old Li pulled out a lighter as well.

“I drank too much.” Huo Niansheng lowered his head, lighting the cigarette from the flame in his hand. “You go back up, I’m going to stay here for a bit.”

Old Li was a bit hesitant, looking back over his shoulder repeatedly as he climbed back up the slope.

Sparks flickered on and off. Huo Niansheng leaned against the wall and took a deep drag, feeling the taste of tobacco slightly soothe his nerves.

He looked down and fiddled with his phone, finding Chen Wengang’s number. Seeing it was already bedtime, he abandoned the thought of bothering him.

He put his phone away, but in his imagination, he was still tracing that peaceful, sleeping face.

Huo Niansheng closed his eyes, his back pressed against the rough wall, uncaring of whether it was dirty. The alcohol was making him a bit dizzy.

In the void, that face slowly melted away half of itself, as if dissolved, becoming terrifyingly hideous, while the other half barely maintained its original appearance.

Chen Wengang, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, leaned messily against the wall. Through his still-intact left eye, he cast an indifferent gaze toward him.

The summer night was muggy, the wind blowing against him and drawing out a layer of sticky sweat.

Huo Niansheng stayed down there for a long time before coming up. Without a word, he waved his hand, signaling Old Li to drive back to Yunding Mansion.

When Chen Wengang woke up in the morning, he saw a message from Huo Niansheng saying he had two tickets and would pick him up for a concert that evening.

Even his colleagues were used to this by now, laughing and remarking that Mr. Huo had a wide variety of date ideas and an artistic heart.

In the evening, Huo Niansheng appeared driving his sports car, holding a bouquet of white roses in full bloom.

Chen Wengang froze for a moment before going to meet him, asking with a faint smile, “What’s—up with you?”

When he had just launched his offensive, this man loved putting on these ostentatious displays, but doing it once or twice was enough. Chen Wengang had thought he had learned what “low profile” meant, so who knew why he was doing whatever he pleased again today.

There weren’t many people left at the school at that hour. He looked left and right, noticing a few young teachers secretly holding their bellies in laughter behind them.

Huo Niansheng didn’t care about other people’s stares. He tossed the roses to him. “I gave them to you, it’s your responsibility to deal with them.”

Chen Wengang shot him a smiling, reproachful look, took the bouquet apart, and distributed the flowers to passing colleagues and children getting out of class.

One kid couldn’t stop his hands; the moment he got one, he immediately tore the petals off, sending them flying everywhere.

Leaning against the car door, Huo Niansheng just smiled, letting them ruin the bouquet of roses however they pleased.

Only when they were all handed out did he slowly stroll over. “Teacher Chen, you ‘gave roses to others and kept the lingering fragrance on your hands,’ but what about me?”

Chen Wengang had actually saved two. Borrowing a female teacher’s small scissors, he snipped off the long stems and slipped one into the buttonhole of his suit jacket.

Huo Niansheng reached for his hand. Chen Wengang brought his hand to his lips and gave it a playful kiss. “You’re charming even when you’re not trying to be romantic.”

Taking back her scissors, the female teacher couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Huo Niansheng pulled him into an embrace and planted a solemn, precious kiss on his temple.

It had drizzled a bit during the day, so today’s wind was slightly cooler. The floral scent carried far, and his heart was filled with tender affection.

Chen Wengang didn’t wear the other flower himself, merely holding it in his hand the whole way.

Stopping at a red light, Huo Niansheng shifted his gaze to look at him.

Chen Wengang’s eyes were lowered, his hand plucking at the plump petals. His profile was soft, like a fluid line drawing, his thick eyelashes fluttering.

Both had dressed formally for the concert, but it was hot. After leaving the grand theater, Chen Wengang took off his jacket and draped it over his arm.

Huo Niansheng also carried his jacket, removing the rose and walking shoulder to shoulder with him down the empty street.

Chen Wengang suddenly asked, “Is something on your mind?”

Huo Niansheng smiled and asked, “Where did you get that idea?”

Chen Wengang hooked the corner of his mouth. “As long as you don’t. Is Jiang Cai adapting well at your house?”

Huo Niansheng actually hadn’t returned to the old residence for a couple of weeks, and hadn’t even seen her face. “Huo Zhenfei’s secretary is handling her affairs.”

Huo Zhenfei’s secretary and lawyer had been very busy for a while. Jiang Wanxia went abroad to convalesce, while Jiang Cai moved directly into the Huo residence. Going from living in a cramped school utility room to the deep courtyards of a wealthy family, anyone hearing it would say she had flown up a branch to become a phoenix. Aside from the myriad of procedures to complete, for her, it was mostly an earth-shattering change in lifestyle. Chen Wengang had extended an olive branch to her, but Jiang Cai had never contacted him.

Instead, Huo Zhenfei had contacted Chen Wengang once, asking if he would come over for the Mid-Autumn Festival family banquet.

Hearing this, Huo Niansheng nearly snorted in laughter. “He thinks the situation isn’t lively enough.”

Chen Wengang said, “I told him the Zheng family also has to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival.”

There was a fountain pool in the plaza, and a small, electric carousel suddenly lit up and started spinning while playing a song. An incredibly excited child sat on every horse, with parents waving at them from outside the railing.

Huo Niansheng smiled faintly and didn’t speak.

Leaving the plaza behind, Chen Wengang suddenly said, “You really are a bit different today.”

Huo Niansheng gave him a deep look, with no intention of answering. Walking another few hundred meters, he suddenly dragged Chen Wengang a few steps behind a closed newsstand. Propping one arm against the sheet metal and with a tree trunk on the other side, he boxed him in.

Chen Wengang smiled at him gently. “What’s wrong?”

Huo Niansheng said, “Answer one question for me.”

He slowly let out a breath and tucked a stray hair behind Chen Wengang’s ear. As his hand moved, the rose pinned to the jacket suddenly fell to the ground.

Huo Niansheng glanced down at it, remaining unmoved.

He raised his head again and fixed his gaze on Chen Wengang. The face before him was calm and gentle, bearing the innocence of someone who had never been hurt.

If there was only pain, why did he have to ask? If he didn’t know, why did he insist on hoping he would remember?

Huo Niansheng suddenly took a half-step back, a frivolous smile hanging on his lips. “Do you like me?”

Chen Wengang frowned and laughed. “What kind of question is that?”

Huo Niansheng looked down at him, his tone teasing but ostensibly serious. “I went back and thought about it. If you want to be with me, I have a condition too—you move out of the Zheng family and stop seeing Zheng Yucheng from now on. Only then will I believe you’re sincere. Can you agree to that?”

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Author’s Note:

Note: From Volume 17 of the Wudeng Huiyuan (Compendium of Five Lamps): “A monk asked, ‘What is it like when one acts as the situation demands?’ The Master replied, ‘The foul-smelling eranda becomes a fragrant sandalwood tree.’ [The monk] said, ‘Where there is spirit, add to the spirit; even where there is no charm, there is still charm.'”

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