Chapter 42: A Visit to the Old Master and a Morning Encounter

The hospital room was empty, save for us. I peeled an orange for the Old Master. He ate a few segments, then waved his hand dismissively, indicating he had enough. Leaning back against the headboard, he wearily closed his eyes.

Watching the Old Master’s closed eyes, I sighed.

His appetite had plummeted recently. Though it had been quite robust a while ago—he’d even clamored for tea eggs and accompanied me to KFC—now he could barely eat anything. Even porridge was too much; after a few sips, he would wave it away, complaining of stomach discomfort.

These days, the Old Master consumed only a little fruit before drifting back to sleep. He slept for extended periods, waking exceptionally early in the mornings, I heard. He would sit against the headboard, gazing out the window for hours until weariness overtook him, then slowly lie down, close his eyes, and fall asleep.

****

When I returned home, Dragon Brother was still in her room, cigarette dangling from her lips as she played games. She seemed utterly unconcerned about her job interview tomorrow.

Ming Hai still hadn’t come home. I had no appetite either, so I simply sat on the sofa, unwilling to move. It was nearing noon, and remembering that Dragon Brother seemed quite fond of my omurice, I reluctantly dragged myself up.

I made a portion in the kitchen, drizzled it with ketchup, and slowly carried it into Dragon Brother’s room.

Dragon Brother didn’t even turn her head, her gaze fixed on the computer screen. “Just put it on the table,” she mumbled. I placed the plate on the desk and stood behind her, silently watching her play.

After a moment, I picked up the cigarette pack from the computer desk, pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and took a deep drag. I sat on Dragon Brother’s bed, quietly observing her back, my mind, however, occupied with other matters.

‘The Old Master’s condition is worsening rapidly.’

I had once asked Old Han if we should just tell the Old Master the truth. After all, he didn’t have much time left; perhaps a final thought, rather than a futile wait for a grandson who would never return.

I’d known the Old Master for quite some time now. He was quite open-minded, not someone with a fragile spirit. Even if Old Han had become a woman, it wouldn’t cause him a sudden heart attack.

As for how to explain it, it would actually be quite simple: just say she went to Thailand, right?

That’s why Old Han had called me out on it, saying I made it sound too easy.

If I were to put myself in the Old Master’s shoes, lying in that hospital bed, and suddenly a young girl said, “Grandpa, I’m your grandson. I went to Thailand and had a s*x change, and now I’ve come to visit you”—I thought about it, and my first reaction would probably be, ‘What the hell? Is this person joking?’

Even if that girl knew everything about me, could tell me my birthday, and recounted every little detail of our past together, would I believe she was my grandson? ‘Bullshit! Who would believe that? Would *you* believe it?’

Explaining it was indeed easy; the facts were there. She had simply become a woman overnight, right? But if I were to tell the Old Master, what would he think?

He would assume his grandson was too busy, perhaps tied up with something unavoidable, and had brought a young girl to put on a play, fearing he would be sad if he didn’t see his grandson.

At that point, the Old Master would either fly into a rage or simply go along with it and pretend to believe. But deep down, he couldn’t possibly believe it. That would be a normal person’s reaction.

Unless the Old Master frequently read gender-bender novels or was particularly chuunibyo, then he might believe it. But was that even possible?

I sat on the bed, smoking, watching Dragon Brother play games, and pondering these thoughts.

I remained there, lost in thought, for the entire afternoon.

Dragon Brother had gone to bed around five or six in the morning yesterday. After playing on the computer all afternoon, she grew tired around four. She announced she was going to sleep, and I nodded before leaving her room.

She would probably wake up around midnight tomorrow. As I left, I asked about her interview time; it was at three in the afternoon, with official work starting the day after. I asked her to wake me when she got up tomorrow, and she nodded in agreement.

Back in my room, I had nothing to do. I lay on the bed, fiddling with my phone, and fell asleep around seven or eight. The next morning, I woke up around six.

Hazily, I got up to make breakfast, only to find that Dragon Brother was already awake, her door open, playing games again.

I opened her window and headed to the kitchen to cook. I planned to make something light for the early morning. While simmering some porridge, my phone rang. I turned down the heat, picked up the phone from the stove, and saw it was Old Han. I answered, “Hello?”

Old Han sounded quite energetic. “Are you up?” she chuckled.

“Mhm.”

“I’m heading towards X High,” Old Han said. “Can I ask you something? Are you coming over later?”

It was early, and I wasn’t keen on moving. “What for? Playing basketball again?”

Old Han sighed. “I have training soon, and I didn’t bring any money when I left. Could you lend me twenty later so I can eat lunch?”

Feeling a little helpless, I glanced at the clock. I had washed up after waking, then spent half an hour washing rice and preparing ingredients. It was only six-thirty in the morning.

‘Everyone in Old Han’s family wakes up so early.’ I remembered Dragon Brother’s interview was in the afternoon. “You go ahead then,” I said. “I’ll come later, after I finish breakfast.”

On the other end of the line, Old Han chuckled. “Alright, thanks. Gotta go.”

After the call ended, I sighed and continued to simmer the porridge. I took a small bag of pickled mustard stems from the fridge and arranged them on a plate. I added two fresh sprigs of cilantro to the porridge; the green flecks in the pale liquid made it look refreshing and appetizing.

I carried the porridge into Dragon Brother’s room. She had started smoking again as soon as she woke up. A large cola bottle sat on her desk, and her head remained perfectly still, eyes glued to the screen.

I placed the food on the table. The room was thick with smoke, hazy and suffocating. The smell made me crave a cigarette too, so I lit one in her room.

After smoking for a while, I sighed and opened the window to air out the room. As I left, I told Dragon Brother I was going out and would be back around noon. She didn’t say anything, just nodded.

Downstairs, I walked straight toward X High.

The morning air was exceptionally crisp, and the sky was fully bright. Golden dawn illuminated half the sky. It was a holiday, so the streets were still mostly empty. The convenience stores near X High were open.

I had some loose change in my pocket and, remembering Old Han’s training, bought a few energy drinks, put them in a bag, and headed to the basketball court.

The court was mostly deserted, save for a few elderly men shooting hoops. I immediately spotted Old Han on the innermost court. The entire X High school team was assembled, five people including Old Han.

Old Han was still wearing her black hoodie, hood up, holding a basketball, and talking to them. Huang Li seemed particularly excited, nodding repeatedly.

I strolled over to them, opened the plastic bag, and chuckled. “You guys are up early! Here, I bought you some drinks.”

Old Han paused, turned to look at me, and smiled. “You came.”

I walked over, grinning, and handed out the drinks from the plastic bag. The boys, who hadn’t started training yet, took the drinks and thanked me with smiles. That Xueli kid—*boy*, I mean—seemed a little shy.

They held the drink bottle with both hands, their face flushed, and looked up at me. “Thank you,” they whispered softly.

My smile felt a bit forced, and I waved my hand, indicating it was nothing. Honestly, if I hadn’t seen Xueli walk out of the men’s restroom, shaking water from their hands, the last time I was here, I would never have believed this person was male.

Huang Li was visibly excited when he saw me, coming right over to shake my hand. The nearly six-foot-three giant had a powerful grip that made my hand ache. He stammered, “Thank you, man, thank you…”

‘Buying a few drinks shouldn’t warrant such excitement,’ I thought, shaking his hand awkwardly. “Hey, no need to be so formal. It’s not much money…”

“Not the drinks! Dude, you’re amazing! How did you convince Sister Han? You’re incredible! I tried so hard, and it didn’t work!” Huang Li exclaimed, his excitement palpable.

I was a little bewildered again and turned to look at Old Han.

Old Han covered her mouth with the back of her hand, laughing uncontrollably. “Just thanking him isn’t enough, is it? Shouldn’t you treat him to a meal or something? Think about it, if this guy hadn’t been pestering me every day, I wouldn’t be joining your school team, right? Isn’t that the truth?”

Huang Li nodded solemnly.

My smile felt stiff as I continued shaking Huang Li’s hand, wondering, ‘When the hell did I ever pester her every day…?’

The other boys watched us, chuckling. Huang Li was already tall and broad; standing so close, he looked like a bear. After shaking hands, he gave my shoulder a serious pat and said earnestly:

“A meal is definitely in order. Brother, you’ve helped us tremendously. This school team was entrusted to me by a senior, and I’ve always wanted to achieve something. We’re strangers, yet you’ve helped me like this. I, Huang Li, am not heartless. If anything ever happens in the future, just give me a call!”

Old Han stood to the side, cradling the basketball, a wide smile on her face.

I hesitated, my smile twitching, and could only nod.

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