Chapter 77: Evening’s Quiet Reflections

As the clock struck half past eight in the evening, the barbecue session neared its end, leaving everyone comfortably satiated, now merely sipping drinks and engaging in light conversation.

“By the way, are there still public buses running at this hour in this area?” Zheng Qiao inquired.

“I’m not entirely sure, though I’d hazard a guess that they’ve stopped running by now,” Li Jianren, still idly chewing on his straw and sipping cola, shook his head. “I usually just call a ride-hailing car.”

“Ride-hailing cars are quite expensive, though…”

“Why don’t a few of you simply share a ride-hailing car and split the fare?”

“But our homes are all in different directions.”

“In that case, perhaps the most economical solution would be to take a shared ride to school, and from there, each of you can arrange your own way home.”

“Alright then.” Zheng Qiao nodded, pulling out her phone to check the time. “It’s half past eight…”

“Eight thirty?!”

Bai Ruijin also retrieved her phone from her bag, and the moment she unlocked it, she saw several missed calls.

All of them were from her parents.

“What seems to be troubling you?” Li Jianren flicked a peppermint candy into his mouth, beginning to chew.

“I told my parents I’d be home by eight… I completely lost track of time…”

“I see,” Li Jianren chewed the peppermint candy, then took another sip of ice-cold cola, the invigorating chill instantly bursting in his mouth. “Phew—given that you’re already late, there’s no need to rush. Simply make a quick call to explain, and then proceed home at a leisurely pace.”

“Okay…”

“Sis, how are we getting back?” Zhong Tian, having tidied up the leftover food and skewers from the grill, asked Zhong Jing. “Taxi or…?”

“She’ll be driving us.”

Zhong Jing gestured towards Lin Chu.

“Alright.” Zhong Tian nodded to Lin Chu. “Thank you, Editor Lin Chu.”

“It’s merely a matter of convenience, being on my way.” She set down her empty drink bottle. “Mm, full and refreshed, we can go.”

She rose to her feet, giving Li Jianren a playful wink. “I’ll entrust the post-gathering duties to you, my handsome friend.”

“Mm, just leave it to me.” Li Jianren continued to chew his peppermint candy. “Have a safe trip.”

“Then we’ll head back too.”

Bai Ruijin, Zheng Qiao, and Chu Lenghu had already agreed; the three of them would call a ride-hailing car and split the fare to school.

“Okay, take care on your way.” Li Jianren took a sip of cola, experiencing the refreshing chill once more, though it wasn’t as intense as the first time. “Be careful out there.”

“Will do!”

Li Jianren did not see them off. He remained seated before the now-empty barbecue grill, silently chewing peppermint candy, drinking cola, and watching the white, smokeless coal still burning quietly within the grill.

The coal was almost spent; he intended to wait until its embers died completely before heading home.

Each time a gathering dissolved, he found himself enveloped by an unbidden wave of wistfulness.

He took a sip of cola, realizing only a faint coolness now lingered on his palate.

Li Jianren intensely disliked this sensation.

Consequently, he never delved into the origins of this melancholy within his heart, choosing instead to perpetually sidestep it.

A master of finding joy amidst hardship, he possessed an uncanny ability to extract amusement from interactions with all manner of individuals—even those he found disagreeable. Thus, when he associated with people whose aspirations and paths diverged from his own, he wouldn’t experience such feelings. He frequently befriended delinquents from school and various individuals from society, integrating with them, enjoying their company for a time, and then severing all ties.

Once these dalliances concluded, a profound sense of liberation would wash over him.

This was his unique method of seeking pleasure.

It had been this way since his childhood.

He poured the remaining cola into the barbecue grill, extinguishing the burning smokeless coal, then placed the cola can on the table. Alongside Auntie Wang, who had approached him at some point, he began tidying up the last bits of ingredients on the table.

“What seems to be troubling you?”

“Huh?” Faced with Auntie Wang’s gentle inquiry, Li Jianren instantly plastered a smile on his face. “Troubled? Not at all! How could I possibly be troubled?”

“Indeed, I might even declare today the happiest day of my entire year!”

“Then cease frowning so,” Auntie Wang advised gently. “The moment your brow furrows, I am reminded of your father’s countenance.”

“That similar?”

“It’s the temperament that’s similar.”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, I’ll make sure never to frown again!” Li Jianren swept the drink cans from the tabletop into a trash bag. “I certainly don’t want to become like him.”

“Heh, your father, aside from his lack of fidelity, was exceptional in every other regard,” Auntie Wang remarked, wiping the cleared tabletop with a rag. “Were you to internalize his better qualities, both your mother and I, your Auntie Wang, would be filled with immense relief.”

“Then never mind; being an excellent person is exhausting,” Li Jianren declared. “Progressing slowly invites accusations of regression, and a single misstep can lead to widespread condemnation. Far better, then, to remain an ordinary high school boy.”

“Have you, Jianren, ever been subjected to criticism from your classmates?”

“Ah, no, not really, I was just guessing.”

“In truth, your intuition isn’t far off,” Auntie Wang revealed. “Your father, during his high school years, found himself isolated precisely because his academic achievements were too exceptional.”

“Oh, that happened?”

Li Jianren packed the trash and set it aside. “Auntie Wang, tell me more?”

“There isn’t much to recount… During his high school days, your father was ostracized by his classmates; scarcely anyone befriended him. Possessing a proud and haughty disposition himself, he reciprocated their disdain.”

“In the class, the only one who could truly speak with him and had some interaction was your mother,” Auntie Wang recalled the past, her eyes filled with nostalgia. “You are well aware of your mother’s character—both guileless and obstinate. The more your father spurned her, the more resolutely she sought his proximity. After three years of this curious dance, they found themselves, almost inexplicably, together.”

“Observing them back then, I genuinely believed their romance would endure for eternity. Yet, alas… it just goes to show that you can know a face, but never truly a heart.”

Li Jianren and Auntie Wang picked up the chairs and carried them back to the storage room.

“Hmph, thus it falls to an exceptional young man like myself, consistent in both word and deed, to set an example.”

“Alright, outstanding young man, bring back all the remaining chairs. I’ll take care of the trash.”

“Got it!”

****

As soon as she got out of the car, Zhong Jing yawned.

Considering her usual stamina, an entire afternoon spent playing in the water must have left her utterly drained and drowsy.

Zhong Tian opened the front door with a key. “Sis, don’t drink cola and play games later; try to go to bed early.”

“Mm…”

Zhong Jing changed her shoes and went straight back to her room.

“Linxi, you go shower first,” Zhong Tian said. “I plan to draw for a bit.”

“Okay.”

He retrieved his portable easel, assembling it with the drawing board, then positioned it in a well-lit corner of the living room before carefully taping an eight-kaiser watercolor paper to its surface.

He planned to paint a starry sky with watercolors.

The inherent richness of watercolors, he mused, should lend itself admirably to depicting the vastness of a starry sky.

He thought, then took out a box of watercolors and watercolor tools that hadn’t been touched in a long time from his room and placed them on the table next to the easel.

Zhong Tian opened the box and found that the watercolors were well-preserved.

There was no trace of mold; a simple spray of water would render them perfectly usable.

Everything prepared, Zhong Tian put on his watercolor apron, holding a brush in one hand and a palette in the other, stood before the drawing board, and began to paint.

Despite the long hiatus from watercolor painting, the foundational knowledge remained firmly ingrained. He quickly mixed colors, directly laying down a layer of grayish-blue-purple as the base with a large brush. Then, based on the colors of the starry sky background he remembered, he layered on purer purples and yellows.

Subsequently, he deepened the hues of the night sky, rendered a sprawling stellar ocean with vibrant, pure colors, and finally, delineated the stark contours of barren hills…

Zhong Tian didn’t paint with extreme detail, only spending half an hour. Once the general effect of the starry sky emerged, he put down his brush, and the starry sky painting was declared complete.

It simply doesn’t possess the breathtaking impact of a photograph.

While the brevity of the work was undoubtedly a contributing factor, Zhong Tian believed the primary reason lay in the insufficient depth of his artistic skill.

‘Perhaps I’m not cut out to teach others effectively…’

‘Blast it, I was too rash.’

Su Linxi had showered. Dressed in her pajamas, she silently stood beside Zhong Tian, examining his starry sky painting.

Having finished her silent appraisal, she offered no immediate comment, instead moving to the kitchen to fetch a cup of warm water, which she then sipped with careful deliberation.

“That’s it then.”

Zhong Tian took down the painting, laid it flat on the table, then carried the bucket into the bathroom to clean his painting tools.

‘Watercolor paint clinging to the skin is quite an uncomfortable sensation…’

He meticulously washed his hands clean, then took off his apron, threw it into the basin for hand washing, and returned to his room to prepare for a shower.

Although he hadn’t gone swimming in the sea today, after a day of sea breeze, he should still wash his hair thoroughly.

Gazing at his long hair in the mirror, a sudden impulse to cut it shorter seized him.

‘Hmm, I’ll make an appointment at the barbershop soon to have it trimmed to shoulder length.’

****

Chu Lenghu got off the bus and returned home.

Her brother, Chu Han, had already returned to university, leaving her as the sole occupant of their home.

She turned on the living room light, sat on the small sofa, and looked out the window.

Outside the window, the city streets were brilliantly lit.

Only a scattering of stars pierced the heavens, the majority of their brilliance swallowed by the pervasive glow of the city.

Lost in her reverie, she was startled by the sudden ring of her mobile phone from within her handbag.

–Hello? Dad?

–Hello? Lenghu, have you eaten?

–Mm, I have.

–Are you full? If not, make yourself some supper.

–I’m full.

–It’s good that you’re full. Your mother and I will be back home tomorrow afternoon. How does the idea of the three of us going out for dinner tomorrow evening strike you?

–Sounds good.

Chu Lenghu spoke with a smile. –Dad, was the photoshoot smooth?

–Exceedingly smooth, in fact! The quality of the starry sky photographs we captured this year is remarkably high! I’ll be sure to show them to you upon my return.

–Mm, I’m looking forward to it.

Chu Lenghu’s father’s tone also sounded happy. –Once you graduate, our entire family will embark on a journey to Lenghu Town together, allowing both you and your brother to witness its magnificent starry sky firsthand!

–Okay.

–Talk to your mom for a bit.

–Lenghu, on the other end of the line, Chu Lenghu’s mother took the phone. –I remember you said you were going out with friends today, did you have fun?

–Mm, quite fun.

–I’m glad you had fun. Now, be sure to get some rest early tonight, she advised, –and try not to stay up late engrossed in your phone.

–I know.

–Alright, that’s all for now, bye~

–Bye.

Chu Lenghu put down her phone, no longer gazing at the city lights outside the window. She drew the curtains, turned off the main light in the living room, and prepared to rest.