Chapter 89#
It was still raining at night, and the road outside the window was not clear. After driving for a while, it was pitch black all around, like passing through a long tunnel, until finally, a light appeared ahead.
There was only one umbrella in the car. Without letting the driver get out, Lu Lin got out himself and opened the umbrella, tightly covering the roof of the car.
After Yan Heqing got out of the car, the two walked side by side into the open wooden door.
It was a typical tiled house in a water town, with several single-story tiled rooms, a corridor, and a courtyard.
The crisp sound of crackling rain echoed in the courtyard. The lighting was not clear, but Yan Heqing could hear it was banana leaves.
There were banana trees planted in the courtyard.
It was raining, so Lu Lin led Yan Heqing along the corridor to the main house.
The lights were on in the tiled house. Hearing the movement, the person in the main room opened the door and walked out quickly to greet them. It was a middle-aged man with a smile on his face, “Mr. Lu, you’re finally here.”
His gaze moved to Yan Heqing again, and he introduced himself as Old Li, “This must be Mr. Yan. Come in quickly. The temperature difference is large in this season here. It’s hot during the day and very cold at night.”
His Mandarin was mixed with a strong Ershiqiao dialect. Yan Heqing nodded politely, “Hello.”
Lu Lin closed the umbrella and hung it up. Old Li then said, “The food is warming on the stove! I’ll go home first.”
Lu Lin nodded. Old Li quickly put on his raincoat and rain boots, didn’t take the corridor, crossed the courtyard, closed the door, and left.
The shoe cabinet was by the door, with two pairs of new slippers. Lu Lin unpacked a pair first and handed them to Yan Heqing.
Changing shoes and walking into the main room, the warm heat dispelled the dampness of the rain on their bodies.
The old house from decades ago didn’t have floorboards; it was a cement floor. It was swept daily, clean enough to reflect light.
The heat came from the square stove by the window, boiling water. The kettle lid was pushed up by the steam from time to time. On the hot stove surface, there were several plates covered with bowls.
After washing his hands, Lu Lin came back first to uncover the bowls.
Several home-cooked dishes: salt and pepper pork ribs, sizzling eel shreds, stir-fried green vegetables, and yam chicken soup.
When Yan Heqing came back refreshed, the rice had already been served, with a pair of pointed bamboo chopsticks resting on it.
Lu Lin sat opposite, scooped the chicken soup, and easily reached over with his long arm to place it next to the rice bowl, “Drink some soup first to warm your stomach.”
The crackling rain outside the window grew louder. Yan Heqing picked up the soup and took a sip. It was a very rich chicken soup, stewed with authentic free-range chicken.
After traveling all the way today, both were quiet while eating, only the kettle on the stove kept making noise.
After eating and cleaning up, it was almost 12 o’clock. It wasn’t suitable to sleep right after eating. Lu Lin dug out a deck of cards from somewhere.
“Want to play cards?”
Yan Heqing had learned some card games when working part-time at the bar, but he didn’t know which one Lu Lin wanted to play. He sat down on the sofa opposite Lu Lin, “Okay.”
Lu Lin opened the box and poured out the cards. The card faces featured different scenic spots, snacks, and cultural introductions of Ershiqiao. It should have been prepared by Old Li.
After shuffling the cards, Lu Lin asked Yan Heqing, “What do you want to play?”
Yan Heqing had no opinion, “Anything is fine.”
Lu Lin rarely played these, but it didn’t mean he didn’t know how. He thought about it and actually thought of a game, “Do you know how to play Bluff?”
Yan Heqing thought for a moment. He had seen others play it in the bar. The gameplay was very simple. Play cards face down and declare them, seeing if other players believe it. So it also has a name called Cheat or I Doubt It. The first one to finish playing their cards wins.
Simply put, it’s a competition of who can bluff the other better.
Yan Heqing nodded, “Yes.”
This game requires removing the jokers. Lu Lin took out the jokers and dealt the cards. Soon, each of them got half of the deck.
“Whoever has the 3 of Hearts goes first.” Lu Lin gathered his half of the deck, spread it out, no 3 of Hearts.
At the same time, Yan Heqing put down two cards, “Two 6s.”
Lu Lin had the remaining two 6s in his hand. His brows were full of smiles. Starting with two cards was a bold way to play. At least Chu Ziyu wouldn’t do it. Chu Ziyu only dared to play one card each time so he wouldn’t lose too fast.
Lu Lin drew a 2 and a 3, “Two.”
If Yan Heqing turned over the cards at this time, Lu Lin would lose and have to take these four cards, but Yan Heqing didn’t turn them over, but continued to put down two cards.
Lu Lin also didn’t turn them over and continued to play cards.
Playing Bluff is also about who can stay more composed and who has more patience.
And both of them happened to be extremely patient.
A calm and evenly matched confrontation. In the end, both had two cards left in their hands.
Yan Heqing put down his two cards, a hint of a smile in his eyes, “Still two 6s.”
At this moment, Lu Lin still had two 6s in his hand. Meeting Yan Heqing’s curved eyes, he chuckled low, didn’t reveal the cards, nor did he play cards, “I guess these two cards of yours are 6s. If I turn them over, I lose.” He pulled Yan Heqing’s left hand and put the cards face down in his palm, “Guess if my remaining cards are two 6s. If you guess right, you win.”
Eyes meeting, the smile in Lu Lin’s eyes was obvious. Yan Heqing didn’t avoid it either, his lips spitting out a word, “Yes.”
Lu Lin turned over the cards in Yan Heqing’s palm, a 6 of Spades and a 6 of Diamonds.
Immediately, Lu Lin turned over the last two cards Yan Heqing played, a 6 of Hearts and a 6 of Clubs. Lu Lin didn’t let go of Yan Heqing’s hand, the corners of his lips rising, “You won. What reward do you want?”
Yan Heqing looked straight into Lu Lin’s eyes. Through the thin two cards, he could still feel Lu Lin’s warm palm. His voice was very light, “You also guessed my cards, so it doesn’t count as losing. You can also ask for a reward.”
His pupils were clear and clean, seeming to have nothing, yet seeming to have everything.
Lu Lin looked at him deeply for a few moments, then moved his hand away, “Can’t think of it for the moment, I’ll ask you for it tomorrow.”
Yan Heqing held the two cards, then let go and put them back on the table, a shallow arc floating on the corner of his mouth, “I’ll also ask you for it tomorrow.”
The house had three bedrooms, two adjacent and one at the other end. Old Li had prepared the two adjacent rooms. Yan Heqing stayed in the room on the left.
The room had been reorganized during the day. The bedding was all brand new dry-cleaned bedding. The furnishings were simple. Besides the bed, there was only a desk facing the window.
Yan Heqing put down his luggage, walked to the desk, and pushed open the window. The rain had stopped at some point.
It was quiet outside. The light shone out, and he saw a few banana trees.
The freshness after the rain floated in the air. The whole world seemed to stop at this moment. Only this tiled house, two lights, and a few banana trees in the courtyard.
His eyes flickered slightly. Yan Heqing took out his phone. There was a notification of a message sent by Lu Muchi a few hours ago, and messages from the WeChat class group.
Yan Heqing didn’t look at any of them and turned off his phone.
Let his time pause as well. Here, pause for five days.
Resting very late, Yan Heqing still woke up at six o’clock sharp the next day, but he didn’t get up. In the quiet environment, he sank into sleep again.
For the first time, he didn’t get up until almost noon. Lu Lin had also just gotten up. After washing up, the two went out to eat.
Walking out of the gate, Yan Heqing realized that what they passed last night was not a tunnel, but an endless green plum orchard. Not taking the main road they came from, Lu Lin took Yan Heqing along a small path, a bluestone path paved in the mud, leading directly to the scenic area.
In early May, the trees were already hanging with green fruits. After walking for a while, they faintly heard someone shouting.
“Mr. Lu, Mr. Yan, going out to play!”
Yan Heqing looked towards the sound. It turned out to be Old Li. His wife was also following him. The two were checking the fruit trees. Yan Heqing smiled and waved to greet them. Seeing this, Lu Lin was slightly surprised.
Old Li’s wife said something to Old Li, and Old Li led her over. As soon as they arrived, the woman stared at Yan Heqing with wide eyes. A few blushes appeared on Old Li’s simple face, “Sorry, Mr. Yan, my wife has been pregnant for a few months. She said you look good and wanted to come over and take a few more looks, so the child will look as good as you in the future. Really can’t do anything about her.”
Said to be blaming, the tone was actually full of intimacy.
The woman nudged Old Li, her eyes unblinking, and said seriously to Yan Heqing: “We have such a saying in our hometown. If you want to give birth to a beautiful baby, you have to look at beautiful people more.”
Old Li laughed, showing all his teeth, “Right? I said Mr. Yan looks like a big star, didn’t fool you, right!”
The woman also laughed, “Still fooled me, Mr. Yan looks even better than a big star!” She couldn’t help but say, “Can I take a photo? I want to look at it every day.”
Old Li’s face changed immediately, afraid that this request was too excessive and would annoy Yan Heqing. Just as he was about to pull the woman away, he didn’t expect Yan Heqing to answer first, “Sure.”
Lu Lin kept looking at Yan Heqing. Yan Heqing was extremely patient and seriously let the woman take a photo according to her request. Getting the photo, the woman held the phone happily and insisted on giving Yan Heqing a few bottles of green plum wine, “I picked the biggest fruits to brew last year. It’s just the right time to drink it now. You must not refuse!”
Yan Heqing didn’t want to refuse, but he and Lu Lin were going to the scenic area now, so it was inconvenient to carry.
Old Li waved his hand, “Not a problem. You and Mr. Lu just go play. After I finish checking the trees, I’ll send them to the house. You can drink them when you come back from strolling.”
Yan Heqing then stopped refusing. After saying goodbye to the couple, the two walked along the bluestone path for about another twenty minutes, out of the green plum forest. There was a wooden gate ahead, and outside was the scenic area.
Lu Lin had been here once and took Yan Heqing to a noodle restaurant. Ershiqiao’s noodles were famous far and wide.
The prices in the scenic area were quite inflated, but the taste was indeed good. Two bowls of noodles and three stir-fried dishes cost nearly three hundred. Yan Heqing paid. Before Lu Lin could speak, he took the initiative to explain, “I don’t mean to settle accounts with you very clearly, I just want to treat you to a meal.”
Lu Lin was finally sure that Yan Heqing was indeed different today, no longer keeping people a thousand miles away.
Lu Lin smiled, “Not very clearly, is that ordinarily clearly?”
Yan Heqing was slightly stunned, and quickly realized that Lu Lin was teasing him. He also smiled, “I’ll delete a word, I don’t mean to settle accounts with you clearly.”
Lu Lin rubbed his hair again. He always liked to rub Yan Heqing’s hair, “That’s right.”
Walking out of the noodle restaurant, during the May Day holiday, the scenic area was crowded with tourists.
It was cool in the morning, and most tourists wore hoodies and jackets. By noon, the sun came out, and it was terribly hot. Lu Lin and Yan Heqing only wore shirts, one black shirt and one white shirt. Coupled with their outstanding appearance, in just a short distance, no less than double digits of men and women came to ask for their WeChat.
Lu Lin’s black eyes darkened slightly. Passing a fork in the road, he suddenly held Yan Heqing’s hand and turned into another small path.
Compared to the main road, there were almost no tourists on the small path, only a few vendors selling trinkets.
The things sold in scenic spots are much the same, but Ershiqiao has a particularly efficacious temple, said to be particularly accurate for marriage, which extended a best-selling small accessory, red bean bracelets.
All the way, all the vendors were selling red bean bracelets, but they were basically fakes.
Passing an old woman’s stall, her bracelets were different from other stalls. They were real jequirity beans of different shapes and dark red colors.
Lu Lin went over and picked a string. Yan Heqing didn’t expect Lu Lin to be interested in these. Just as he was about to ask the old woman for the price, Lu Lin grabbed his hand and put the red bean bracelet on it.
Chuckling lightly, he said: “Not settling accounts with you clearly, but this string of red beans, I’ll pay the bill.”