Chapter 367: , Mai Sui, it

Is he writing Wu Xia?

Or is he writing fantasy and sci-fi to export and earn foreign exchange?

Li Heng pondered for a long time but couldn't decide, as both had their pros and cons.

Especially with Wu Xia novels; he was, after all, a legendary writer of great renown in the country. Instinctively, he felt a resistance to writing this stuff—damn it, it felt so beneath him.

He could open a secondary account, but that would be purely for the sake of making money. As a reborn person, the one thing he would never lack in the future was ways to make money.

As for fantasy and sci-fi, if done well, it could indeed earn big money—after all, pounds and dollars were valuable—but there was a rigid condition here: it required the right time, the right place, and the right people.

In the current backdrop of clashing Eastern and Western cultures, opening the door to the Western world was not easy. Even if he held novels that were world classics in his hands, others might not necessarily accept them; he needed powerful figures to help him offset this.

After thinking back and forth for a long time, Li Heng finally chose to set it aside for now. He was busy enough as it was; *Bai Luyuan* wasn't even finished yet, and he was still ambitiously trying to dabble in business. Whether it was Wu Xia, sci-fi, or fantasy, he would wait until a turning point arrived.

After putting away Li Xi's letter, Li Heng drank a bottle of beer to rest for a while, then picked up Song Yu's letter.

Although he could roughly guess the content inside before even opening it, he just loved reading it; he just liked looking at it. He held the letter paper and read it carefully from front to back three times before stopping.

After reading, a sudden, intense impulse surged within him—an impulse to go to Peking University to see Song Yu.

But just as he stood up, his blood pumping, he sat back down a moment later.

He had promised to have dinner with Liu Yue tomorrow night. If he left now, he would definitely have to stand her up tomorrow. In terms of emotional closeness, standing Liu Yue up wouldn't be a big deal, but keeping his word was one of his few virtues.

After earnestly writing a reply to Song Yu, Li Heng picked up the last unopened letter.

At just one glance, he was stunned. The handwriting on the envelope was so familiar?

Wasn't this the same anonymous font from the last time it was mailed to Bai Luyuan?

Frowning and pondering for a moment, he finally opened it. It was indeed a love letter, but he didn't look at the content in detail; instead, he quickly flipped to the very bottom.

Damn, just as expected, the sender still hadn't signed their name this time either.

"Scuff, scuff, scuff."

Just as he was in a daze, the sound of light footsteps came from the stairwell; someone was coming up.

Li Heng turned his head to look toward the sound and happened to see Zhou Shihe walking up the stairs.

At this moment, the young lady was carrying two dishes: a large plate of potato beef and a plate of pan-fried tofu.

"You're here." Li Heng stood up.

"Mm." Zhou Shihe gave a soft hum.

"Didn't we agree on potato beef soup? Look at this feast; you're going to spoil me," Li Heng teased himself.

Zhou Shihe smiled knowingly and didn't respond. Instead, she bent down to place the two dishes on the coffee table. Scanning the row of letters and beer, she said gently, "There are two more dishes. Eat slowly."

After saying this, she turned back toward the stairwell. Just as she reached halfway, she remembered something, stopped, and asked, "Li Heng, didn't you cook rice?"

Li Heng shook his head. "I suddenly didn't feel like moving, so I didn't."

Zhou Shihe said, "Then come over with me; it saves me from running back and forth."

Since they were already so familiar with each other, he, a foodie, didn't act coy and followed her downstairs.

On the way, he asked, "Mai Sui hasn't returned yet?"

Zhou Shihe raised her right wrist to check her watch. "It should be another half hour."

Li Heng asked, "Another half hour? The food will be cold by then. Why don't you eat a little with me first?"

Zhou Shihe looked at him. "I'm not that hungry yet."

Fearing he might misunderstand, she added a moment later, "But I can keep you company while you have a drink."

Entering the small building at No. 27, Li Heng suddenly discovered that the young lady before him had actually made two portions of food. It was very clear that one was specifically for him, and one was kept for when Mai Sui and Ye Ning returned.

Looking at the dishes on the stove, Li Heng stood in the kitchen, motionless. It was only after a long while that he sighed aloud, "Comrade Shihe, thank you."

Zhou Shihe seemed to have guessed his thoughts and said from behind him, "You've been overthinking it this month."

She only said half of it and didn't finish.

From their perspective: last month, because Xiao Han was always making surprise visits on weekends, Mai Sui, Zhou Shihe, Sun Man, and Ye Ning were all uncomfortable spending too much time with him, fearing that Xiao Han would misunderstand, leading to unnecessary disputes and conflicts.

Of course, the main reason was that he was too busy. Busy to what extent? He almost never stepped out, and they didn't want to disturb him too much.

Li Heng carried the two dishes back to the small building at No. 26, and Zhou Shihe helped him scoop a bowl of rice.

Going up to the second floor, Li Heng sat on the sofa and asked, "Erguotou? Or beer?"

Zhou Shihe sat opposite him. "Beer, I suppose."

"Alright, I'll have Erguotou, you have beer. Drink as much as you can; don't force yourself." Li Heng opened a new bottle of beer for her.

Zhou Shihe took it, poured herself a glass, and asked a moment later, "You've been in seclusion writing the whole time. How far have you written in your new book?"

Li Heng said, "I've already finished 34 chapters and am currently writing chapter 35."

Zhou Shihe hesitated for a moment and asked, "Can I read it in advance?"

Under normal circumstances, given her personality, she wouldn't have presumptuously asked such a question, but after reading the beginning in Jingcheng last year, she had been unable to forget it, and her heart kept dwelling on *Bai Luyuan*.

That was why she asked.

Li Heng nodded. "Naturally, you can. However, the manuscript isn't at home right now; it's with my teacher. It might take until tomorrow or the day after to get home. I'll let you know when it does."

"Okay, thank you." Zhou Shihe raised her glass and took the initiative to clink it with his.

*Clink! * Seeing him finish half a glass of Erguotou in one gulp, she thought for a moment and asked, "Are you in a bad mood?"

Li Heng swirled the glass in his hand. "It can't exactly be called a bad mood. With your intelligence, you should be able to guess."

Hearing him say this, two figures appeared in Zhou Shihe's mind, and she immediately stopped asking further.

Li Heng poured himself another glass of Erguotou. This was the fourth small glass, and he felt that once he finished this one, he would be at his limit. "Has it been a while since you played the piano? How come I haven't heard it at all?"

Zhou Shihe looked at him, straightened her posture, and said, "No, I practice almost every afternoon. It must be that you've been too absorbed in your writing and didn't notice."

"Is that so? When did my ears get so dull?" Li Heng was puzzled.

Zhou Shihe smiled faintly, didn't respond, and picked up the beer to take a small sip.

Just as the two were drinking and chatting, a torrential rain suddenly began to fall outside the window. Zhou Shihe turned to look, then stood up and said, "You keep drinking; I'm going to take umbrellas to Sui Sui and the others. They didn't bring umbrellas today."

Li Heng stood up as well. "I'll go with you—"

Halfway through his sentence, he felt his body swaying. Damn it, he was drunk.

Zhou Shihe noticed his abnormality and immediately said, "You stay home and rest. It's not dark outside yet; it'll be fine at school."

Li Heng moved his feet, but his body was even less responsive, so he sat back down and looked up. "Uh, it seems I really am drunk. You take care on the road."

Zhou Shihe looked at him several times and understood a bit—he must be in low spirits, which led to him not holding his liquor as well as before. But seeing the rain getting heavier, she didn't dare stay long and hurried downstairs to deliver the umbrellas.

The sound of footsteps gradually faded away, and the second-floor living room was left with only one person. Li Heng drank mouthful by mouthful. Mixing Erguotou and beer, he slowly became muddled. He didn't know how much time had passed, but he eventually slumped on the sofa and fell into a drunken sleep.

The rain drizzled on, thoughts drifted away.

Mai Sui, who had just finished a meeting, walked out of the conference room and saw Zhou Shihe in the hallway. She asked, "Has Li Heng returned?"

Zhou Shihe handed the other umbrella in her hand to Ye Ning and Sun Man behind her, then shared one with Mai Sui. "He's back, but he seems to be in a bad mood and drank a bit too much."

Mai Sui asked, "Did something happen?"

Zhou Shihe didn't speak at first. It wasn't until Ye Ning and Sun Man had walked far away in the rain, laughing and joking, that she spoke: "Nothing major. He probably just isn't used to being idle yet."

Used to what?

Both women knew it in their hearts.

"Boom! Boom!"

Streaks of lightning flashed across the sky, followed by huge claps of thunder.

The two women looked at each other, simultaneously thinking of the scene where someone was afraid of thunder. Zhou Shihe broke the silence: "Let's hurry too."

Mai Sui followed suit and quickened her pace, returning to Lushan Village before long.

After seeing her best friend to the door of the small building at No. 27, Mai Sui hesitated for a moment and said, "You guys eat first, don't worry about me. I'm going to go check on him."

Zhou Shihe wasn't surprised at all, as if she had long expected this to happen. She neither discouraged nor encouraged her, just stood at the courtyard gate, quietly watching her best friend anxiously cross through layers of rain, eventually disappearing into the small building at No. 26.

For a moment, she felt that Mai Sui was the person who loved him the most in this world, and also the person most suited to him. What a pity.

Seeing that only Zhou Shihe had returned, Ye Ning looked left and right, asking in surprise, "Shihe, where's Sui Sui? You two were clearly together just now; how come it's just you?"

Zhou Shihe put the umbrella aside and beckoned the two to eat. "Sui Sui ran into an acquaintance on the way and had something come up. Let's eat first; just save some food for her."

After saying this, she gave Sun Man a subtle glance.

Sun Man immediately understood and began to provide cover: "Ye Ning, there's no class tomorrow since it's the weekend. How about we compete in drinking tonight? Whoever gets drunk first buys breakfast tomorrow."

"Bring it on, you think I'm afraid of you?" Provoked, Ye Ning immediately forgot all about Mai Sui's business and began to battle with Sun Man.

Zhou Shihe watched the two women drinking, but her mind was entirely on the alley outside the door, keeping an eye on the situation at all times to avoid being caught off guard if Xiao Han made another surprise visit.

On the other side, the small building at No. 26.

After entering the house, Mai Sui closed the door and then walked lightly up to the second floor.

Pausing at the stairwell, her gaze instantly pierced through layers of obstacles like a sharp arrow, landing on Li Heng. At this moment, he was lying across the sofa, his 178cm frame trembling with the thunder and lightning outside the window; clearly, he wasn't at peace even in his dreams.

Her gaze lingered on him for a while, then she took two steps in one, reaching his side. She looked down at him from above, her mood complex.

"Song Yu..."

Whenever it thundered, if Li Heng was in a dream, he would subconsciously call out this name. Because when he was struck to death by lightning in his previous life, Song Yu was right beside him.

This scene was carved into his bones; he could never forget it.

Hearing the two words "Song Yu," Mai Sui didn't feel any annoyance. Instead, she turned back to the bedroom, found a thin blanket, and covered him with it.

They say it's easiest to catch a cold in spring; in this weather, she was afraid he would catch a chill.

"Mai Sui..."

While her mind was blank and she was staring at him, Mai Sui heard her own name from his mouth.

Her head instantly became dizzy, her white teeth gently biting her lower lip; she couldn't quite believe it.

In fact, she had fallen into a cognitive trap of her own.

At this stage, Li Heng was most worried about her, worried that she would be stimulated by Xiao Han. But she wasn't willing to get close to him, and Li Heng didn't want to pester her. Because he had to carefully maintain her self-esteem and self-respect. Drinking to relieve his boredom today was also because of this.

In the last month, had he thought about trying to win Mai Sui back?

Yes, and this thought hadn't occurred just once.

But in the end, he gave up.

The reason was that he knew this young lady too well. If she was deliberately hiding from him, then if he forced his way to her, it might not improve the situation and would instead increase her psychological burden.

Song Yu was already a knot in her heart; if there were another knot, she, with her heavy ideological baggage, would be unable to bear the weight.

They say time can dilute everything, and it can also nurture everything. Li Heng still remembered that sentence, that hazy sentence she said: "I will not let you down."

If it were someone else who said this, Li Heng would have deliberated on it.

If these words came from Mai Sui's mouth, he believed it!

He chose to believe it without any hesitation, because she had never married in her previous life. And now, he vaguely understood why she hadn't married in her previous life.

The rain outside the window fell heavier and thicker. Suddenly, amidst a cracking clap of thunder, the startled Li Heng suddenly opened his eyes. When he saw the familiar face in his muddled state, he instantly felt completely at ease, rested his head against her thigh, and slowly fell asleep, sleeping very soundly.

It was truly sound. With his heart settled, he didn't have any more dreams this time, no more nightmares appeared in his dreams, and consequently, he didn't call out any more names.

Seeing the stark change in him, seeing the look of terror gradually disappear, at some moment, Mai Sui felt a sense of compassion. Her charming eyes flowed like autumn water, and she reached out both hands, gently hugging his head and neck, placing them on her thigh. Then she pulled the thin blanket over him again.

After doing all this, Mai Sui looked down at him sleeping peacefully, feeling a bit infatuated for a moment.

She didn't know why she had to do this?

She also didn't know why his spirit was so tense every time it thundered?

But a voice in the bottom of her heart told her that holding him as he slept could bring him a sense of security and allow him to sleep better and more soundly.

Experienced people all know that it usually takes 3 to 6 hours to wake up after getting drunk. Li Heng had drunk more than half a bottle of Erguotou and 4 bottles of beer tonight. By the time he opened his eyes again, it was completely dark outside, and it wasn't thundering anymore, just still raining.

Looking at each other, Li Heng was stunned for a long while, then said slowly, "It's so good to see you!"

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Published first, edited later.

10,500 words published. There is a slight change at the end of the previous chapter.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 368 =====