Parsed with an automated reader. The content accuracy is not guranteed.\n
âMay we talk privately?â said Luo Zihui.\n
Wang Guangning didnât think he had anything to talk about with Luo Zihui, but held his smile: âSure.â\n
Although talking privately was mentioned, they didnât actually go too far off. Â They just ended up at an alley next to the restaurant.\n
âDidnât think you would also come.â Luo Zihui said, as she twirled the ends of her hair softly. Her hair was hanging loosely across her shoulders, lightly permed, looking lovely and charming.\n
âIt was a rare opportunity, so I grabbed the chance to meet up with my classmates.â Wang Guangning said, unclear about Luo Zihuiâs actual intentions.\n
âIâm with Zhuo Ximing now.â Luo Zihui suddenly changed the topic.\n
Wang Guangning had to think for a moment before he recalled who Zhuo Ximing was â F Uniâs computing genius of their time [see chapter 17].\n
He was a truly outstanding man.\n
But what did this have to do with him? Wang Guangning believed his friendship with Luo Zihui wasnât deep enough to warrant keeping each other in the loop.\n
âZhuo Ximing treats me really well. He cares about me. Even though heâs not romantic enough, heâs very considerate.â Luo Zihui looked a little emotional. âI was very naĂŻve before. Iâd only wanted to be with the one I liked. But once we got together, I realized that if the other personâs heart wasnât with me, no matter how hard I forced it, there wouldnât be happiness.â\n
Luo Zihui looked at Wang Guangning, and slowly said: âYou definitely wouldnât know that I was the one who initiated the break-up with Zhang Lingyi.â\n
Wang Guangning didnât reply. Truth be told, he hadnât ever wanted to ask Zhang Lingyi about anything to do with him and Luo Zihui.\n
It was an emotional scar for him. If there was no need to, he wasnât willing to open up that scar by himself.\n
Luo Zihui saw that Wang Guangning was silent, and softly laughed at herself. She then said: âYouâre really alike. Seems easy to get along with, but wonât say a word, so everything has to be guessed. Really serves you right.â\n
Serves you right that you couldnât be together at that time.\n
Wang Guangningâs expression slightly shifted, but he didnât know what to say.\n
Luo Zihui looked up slightly, as though she was recalling something: âI only dated Zhang Lingyi for a month, but in that month, we only met three times. When we were supposed to be in our honeymoon period, he was totally consumed by the search for you.â\n
âI donât know what happened between the two of you then, why he suddenly cared about you so much. But this made me understand one thing â it turns out that in Lingyiâs heart, I was far less important to him than you. Isnât it funny?â That year, she really felt she had been made a mockery, but with the passage of time, Luo Zihui found that she could in fact think back on those events calmly, and even dismiss them with a laugh.\n
âThere was one time I was having a meal with him, and discovered his phoneâs screen was your headshot. I wanted to change it to mine, but he ended up grabbing the phone back so anxiously, and wouldnât let me touch it.â Luo Zihui thought back to that scene with a pang of sadness. She gave a bitter laugh: âWang Guangning, I remember, your phoneâs screen also seemed to be Zhang Lingyi, yeah.â\n
Wang Guangning was surging with emotions inside, but his expression didnât reveal anything.\n
Luo Zihui saw how she had been chattering on, but Wang Guangning hadnât given a single response. Helpless, she tilted her head to one side and smiled: âActually, I just wanted to thank you, for letting me see my place in Zhang Lingyiâs heart clearly.â\n
Wang Guangning finally felt it would be too ill-mannered of him if he still didnât reply, so he gave a faint smile: âThank you for telling me all this.â\n
He thought a little more and added: âI wish you happiness.â\n
âThank you, itâs what I deserve.â Luo Zihui said. To leave the person she loved deeply, wasnât it for the sake of a more lasting happiness?\n
Seeing that Wang Guangning wasnât going to say more, she sensibly came to a stop and took her leave.\n
After Luo Zihui left, Wang Guangning fell silent for a long while.\n
Even though it was the case that Zhang Lingyi had clearly declared that he liked him, and that heâd liked him for a long time.\n
But deep in Wang Guangningâs heart was the thought that he was the one whoâd fallen in love first. The four long years of loneliness and yearning had made it hard for him to express his true feelings. No matter how considerate and fawning Zhang Lingyi was, there was a knot in his heart. He blamed Zhang Lingyi for extricating himself too smoothly, and making him a complete fool.\n
Yet what Luo Zihui just described to him was a Zhang Lingyi that he had never known.\n
So, was he just the same as him at that time, already in love with the other person? Had he also been anxious and sad over the otherâs departure?\n
So, he wasnât so unaffected, and was just like him, profoundly trapped?\n
Wang Guangning suddenly felt as though his heart had swollen up with something that was clamouring to burst out.\n
<hr class="wp-block-separator">\nZhang Lingyi finally managed to get away from his class reunion and was about to call Wang Guangning and ask where he was, when he received a message from Wang Guangning.\n
âIâm beside Moon Lake. You come over, and by the way, bring a spade with you.â\n
Zhang Lingyi didnât understand what this was for, but since Shoushou had given the order, he would of course comply, yeah. So, he went to a sports shop and bought a small shovel, then eagerly [lit. with jolting buttocks] ran off to Moon Lake.\n
There were quite a few people at Moon Lake too. Many alumni had specially made their way there to reminisce about their youth, so it took Zhang Lingyi some time before he found Wang Guangning.\n
âShoushou.â Zhang Lingyi rushed toward Wang Guangning, waving. He raised the little shovel before him: âWhat are we doing?â\n
Wang Guangning pointed at the roots of the tree next to him: âDigging for something, yeah.â\n
On the surface, he was very calm, but in fact he was a little anxious.\n
It was only then that Zhang Lingyi noticed the tree next to Wang Guangning was a fiddle-leaf fig. It was the only fiddle-leaf fig by the shore of Moon Lake. Belatedly, he recalled how theyâd buried their secrets there together.\n
At the time, theyâd been full of zest as they followed along with that âbeing gayâ checklist. Theyâd buried their own secrets there, agreeing to dig them up after graduation. But with Wang Guangningâs sudden departure, Zhang Lingyi had tossed this matter to the back of his mind.\n
At long last, this matter was recalled.\n
But Zhang Lingyi couldnât quite work out what Wang Guangning was thinking. They had done this more with playfulness than any other intention, and Zhang Lingyi didnât feel that Wang Guangning had buried any great secret. What made him take this digging so seriously now?\n
Whatâs more, what heâd buried that year was âŚ\n
His impressive memory caused Zhang Lingyi to recollect swiftly the contents of what heâd buried. Internally, he went totally ĺ§ĺ§.\n
âGo on and dig then.â Wang Guangning saw that Zhang Lingyi was in a daze, and issued a direct order.\n
Back to the old adage â if Shoushou gave the order, then he would of course comply.\n
And so, big olâ handsome Zhang Lingyi took up the little shovel and, squatting down, he began to dig at the base of the fiddle-leaf fig.\n
There were many people strolling by the lake, and quite a few of them were shocked by this sight â whatâs he doing? Could he be stealing this tree? Who wouldâve thought that this young man, all good-looking and such, would be a low-class tree robber!\n
And he was even doing this in the light of day, in plain sight â truly, public morality has gone to the dogs!\n
Everyone was looking at him with contempt.\n
Zhang Lingyi was serious about digging up the soil, and didnât notice that heâd become a well-dressed scum of the earth to the passers-by. Earnestly and speedily, he dug up that chocolate tin. As itâd been a long time and the soil was muddy, that tin had already rusted thoroughly, and was horrible to look at.\n
Zhang Lingyi held the tin gingerly, the dislike on his face clear as he looked at Wang Guangning: âShoushou, do we open this now?â\n
Wang Guangning saw that there were many people about, and said: âLetâs open it when we get back.â\n
Zhang Lingyi had no objection. Heâd already been thinking that these passers-by were really strange. They kept giving him strange looks, and it was making him very uncomfortable!\n
Zhang Lingyi drove Wang Guangning home. His hands still had traces of mud, so he went to wash his hands first. By the time he returned from the washroom, Wang Guangning had wiped the tin clean and placed it on the coffee table, and was waiting on the sofa for him.\n
Zhang Lingyi saw that Wang Guangning had on a solemn look, and this induced a little nervousness in him. He walked over and sat next to him.\n
âZhang Lingyi.â Wang Guangning looked at him: âGive me your phone.â\n
âAh?â Zhang Lingyi was confused, but handed over his phone to Wang Guangning.\n
Wang Guangning received the phone â it was the same one from four years ago, only that the burnishing of time had rendered it a little old-fashioned, and quite a bit of the coating had come off. He pressed a button and the screen lit up â the wallpaper was indeed still that of him pretending to be cool. The phone had a password â Wang Guangning didnât think twice before entering his own birth date, and as expected, the phone was unlocked.\n
âShoushou, what do you want to see?â Zhang Lingyiâs expressions kept shifting as he observed without understanding why Wang Guangning was looking at his phone.\n
Wang Guangning feigned nonchalance as he shrugged and returned the phone to Zhang Lingyi: âNothing much. You open the tin, yeah.â\n
Zhang Lingyi obliged and opened the tin. Because it was rusted so badly, Zhang Lingyi had to exert a lot of strength before he could open it. Flakes of rust fell on the table too.\n
Fortunately, the tinâs interior wasnât rusty, and was rather clean.\n
Two folded pieces of paper quietly laid at the bottom of the tin. The passing of time had yellowed the papers somewhat.\n
Though the two of them had already mentally prepared themselves, when they actually saw the papers, they couldnât help feeling a little nervous.\n
âLetâs look.â Wang Guangning pretended to be calm as he picked up one of the pieces, doing his best not to let his hands tremble.\n
The piece of paper was slowly opened up. There was one sentence in bold cursive handwriting on the yellowed piece of paper â\n
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">Actually, on that night in Xiamen, I wasnât hard because of the A/V, but because Shoushou was beside me ~
</blockquote>\nZhang Lingyi: ââŚâŚâ\n
Wang Guangning: ââŚâŚâ\n
âHeh heh.â Zhang Lingyi scratched his head as he gave a foolish laugh. He blushed slightly: âShoushou, it was afterward that I understood, I already liked you then.â\n
Wang Guangningâs mood was very complicated. It was true that he was happy, but this joy was contaminated by an unspeakable ĺ§.\n
Zhang Lingyi, you really can be even cruder, itâs OK. [edited this line on 15 Feb after I finally understood the sarcastic use of the slang]\n
âOK, letâs take a look at yours.â Zhang Lingyi was really curious now. He took up the remaining piece of paper, nervous and impatient as he opened it.\n
Wang Guangningâs handwriting was much tidier and neater than Zhang Lingyiâs, and the piece of paper also had just one sentence â\n
<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">It would be so great if you were a girl, then I would be able to like you openly.
</blockquote>\nZhang Lingyi read this sentence. Was struck dumb for a moment. And was hesitant as he looked at Wang Guangning: âShoushou, this sentence, what does it mean?â\n
Wang Guangning was blushing a little, but still cleared his throat, looked at Zhang Lingyi, and slowly said: âZhang Lingyi, I âŚâŚ like you.â\n
After a pause, he added: âI liked you from four years ago.â\n
Zhang Lingyiâs eyes suddenly widened. He didnât dare believe what he was seeing, what he was hearing, but he couldnât help but smile wide, and wider again.\n