Chapter 9: Mosquito Net

The sun hung high, and the cicadas’ chirping grew fierce.

Early summer in the mountain village was still cool. Even with sweat beading on the forehead, a breeze kept it comfortable.

The barley tea in Sang Shen’s hand had warmed.  The old clock’s hour hand had ticked forward. He’d only zoned out briefly, yet nearly an hour had passed.

The sparsely furnished room felt empty. Only the breeze lifted the tattered gauze curtains.

He murmured under his breath.

“If this is just your dream, what do you want? If it’s just death, there wouldn’t be cycle after cycle… Just to be loved? Oh…! Huh? Where’s Lin Qing?”

Snapping out of his daze, he found the room empty of Lin Qing.

Crossing the room’s sharp divide of light and shadow, Sang Shen reached the door.

Green vines trailed shadows on the old brick walls. Sunlight dappled through tree leaves onto the corridor. Lin Qing hadn’t gone far—she gazed at the blue sky with pure white clouds, their light reflecting in her eyes.

“Lin Qing? Lin Qing?”

“…Hm?”

Lin Qing swayed, her face briefly showing worry and sadness. But it quickly shifted to a lively smile.

“What’s up, Sang~ Shen~?”

“Weird tone…”

“It’s more intimate this way.”

“What were you looking at? Daydreaming?”

“Hm… just thinking.”

Lin Qing turned, leaning on the old railing, gazing at the cracked cement road below.

“Maybe the cycle itself is slowly healing her heart.”

“You mean… Yin Xing?”

Sang Shen leaned beside her, following her gaze to a lush mulberry tree.

“Yup. One day, it’ll heal, right? Those… lingering pains.”

“But we can’t just watch.”

“Yup! We can help her heal faster~”

“And make sure no ‘scars’ remain.”

“Right.”

Lin Qing turned, hands behind her back, smiling brightly. She leaned closer, teasing.

“Maybe if you kiss her, Sang Shen, she’ll snap out of it~”

“She’s not Snow White… And I’m no prince.”

“Just kidding.”

She stuck out her tongue, hopping lightly to the side.

“Oh, I said I’d give you a mosquito net yesterday, right? Since you’re here, take it back with you.”

“Oh, great… thanks.”

“We’re the same person. Why so formal?”

“But… I can’t connect you with ‘me’ at all. Not just you, Yin Xing too…

We’re the same person, but different experiences make us feel so different…”

“Our core is still the same.”

“Uh… maybe? But on the surface, you’re just a neighbor girl. I can’t imagine myself as a girl, getting used to wearing skirts…”

“Huh? Don’t like it?”

Lin Qing’s eyes widened.

“N-No, not that I don’t like it!”

Sang Shen waved his hands.

“Just… hard to imagine things I haven’t experienced…”

“Maybe~ I’m just a regular girl with Jing Hong Ye’s memories.”

“Haha, then maybe I’m just a regular guy with Jing Hong Ye’s memories?”

Sang Shen joined her joking.

“Of course, that’s impossible, right?”

“Yeah, too many things prove I’m me.”

“Yup~! Enough of that, I’ll grab the mosquito net~ Oh!”

He caught Lin Qing as she nearly fell. Worried and guilty, he asked,

“You okay? Does it still hurt? You said it didn’t, but that was just bravado, wasn’t it?”

“No, no, just twisted my ankle yesterday. I’m a bit unsteady today, that’s all.”

“That’s still pain…”

Sang Shen helped her lean against the railing.

“I’ll get it myself—don’t want you splitting your wound.”

“Okay… here, keys~”

“Whoa.”

Sang Shen gaped at the jangling keyring she handed him.

“So many keys?”

“Nine rooms in the dorm, so nine keys. Plus mailbox, bike lock, Fruit Tree Ma’s shed, Tricycle Uncle’s…”

“Wait, wait, the first ones make sense, but why do others give you their keys?”

“So I can look after things when they’re away.”

“Isn’t that exhausting?”

“Not at all. Helping people makes me happy~”

Sang Shen pursed his lips.

“I could never… Be that helpful. I’d rather sleep more.”

“That’s how you become needed by others.”

“…Huh? What’s that mean?”

“Nothing~ The mosquito net’s probably in 301.”

Sang Shen blinked, puzzled, but didn’t press. He checked the keyring’s tags, found the brass key marked “301,” and opened the door at the corridor’s end.

Inside was a pile of clutter. Dust swirled as he opened the door. It was organized but still chaotic from sheer volume.

“So much stuff… You use all the other rooms as storage?”

“Not all of them.”

“Where’s the stuff?”

“In the living room.”

“I can barely find the living room…”

“There’s a hardboard bed. It’s probably there~”

“So uncertain? Never used it before?”

“Hm—never paid attention to these details.”

“I see…”

Sang Shen covered his nose, venturing deeper. Despite the bright sun outside, drawn curtains and dim lights made it gloomy.

The hardboard bed in the living room was buried in bedsheets. Sang Shen dug through, nearly engulfed, before finding several mosquito nets.

“Found it?”

Lin Qing sat on the corridor railing, swinging her legs.

“Got it! But I messed things up. I’m tidying!”

“No need, let it be messy.”

“It’s fine, it’ll be quick!”

Sang Shen insisted.

“There’s a few nets here. All usable?”

“Yup! Should be about the same size. For a bed, you’d need to secure it. On the floor, just drape it over.”

“Got it—”

Soon, Sang Shen emerged, covered in dust. The room was too dusty, and he’d bumped an old, grimy shelf, getting dust all over his head.

“Pfft…”

Lin Qing giggled.

“What happened? You’re filthy.”

“Ugh… too much dust in there. Phew—outside air’s so fresh.”

Lin Qing circled behind him, tiptoeing to dust off his back.

“Wash the net before using it. Or—I can wash it and bring it over?”

“No, no, I’ll wash it myself.”

“Okay.”

Lin Qing smiled at him as he turned.

“Should… I walk you back?”

“No need.”

Sang Shen nodded, then slapped his forehead.

“Oh, right, can I borrow your bike? I want to get rice and oil from the village shop. So we can cook something.”

“Sure, it’s downstairs, unlocked.”

“Unlocked?”

“No one steals in the village.”

“Uh… okay. I’ll return it right after.”

“No rush, tomorrow’s fine.”

“Uh… oh.”

“Hm?”

“If you think of anything or notice something, tell each other right away.”

“Yup! Will do~”

“Thanks, other me…”

Sang Shen grinned shyly.

“I calculated our ages. You’re way older, huh? You went back to the ‘90s and lived all those years…”

“Yup~”

“So I’m the youngest?”

Sang Shen muttered to himself.

“What’s that?”

“Nothing… just surprised.”

“Ride slow on the way back.”

“Got it… I’m off?”

“Okay~”

Lin Qing watched him vanish around the stairwell corner. She leaned on the railing, waving hard as he emerged below.

“Ride slow—!”

“Don’t worry! I thought the bike was just for carrying stuff and pushing… It’s fixed?”

“Was easy to fix~”

“Oh—!”

“Oh!”

Lin Qing leaned out further.

“Sang Shen—!”

“What—?”

He shouted back, looking up.

“Call me Qing Qing from now on.”

“Qing Qing…?”

“Yup, that’s what you used to call me.”

“Oh… got it!”

Sang Shen agreed without hesitation.

“See you later—Qing Qing!”

Lin Qing didn’t reply, just waved hard until he was out of sight.

The sky stayed blue, clouds soft, cicadas buzzing relentlessly.

The stream gurgled, distant green mountains stretched endlessly. The old post office dorm below remained quiet and empty.

Nothing had really changed. It was still a summer mountain village, full of nature’s breath.

But her smile vanished completely, leaving only deep, unshakable sorrow.

“Maybe this is the last time…”

She took a deep breath.

“If we disappear again… we might never meet again…”