Chapter 554: The Snow is Getting Heavier

Song Yu said, "The snow is getting heavier. Let's call Xiao Feng and Liu Li to Xila Hutong. Liu Li probably has something to discuss with you."

She was asking for his opinion while also taking the opportunity to introduce Xiao Feng to the Sihe Academy.

Originally, Xiao Feng and Xiao Han were inseparable best friends, but ever since Xiao Feng arrived at Peking University, her relationship with Song Yu had progressed by leaps and bounds. They met regularly every week, and now she had naturally become one of Song Yu's closest friends.

Li Heng grasped her intentions; how could he disagree? He agreed readily.

Leaving the school, the four of them arrived at Xila Hutong.

As soon as they entered the Sihe Academy, Xiao Feng was stunned by the rows of wintersweet in the courtyard. Unable to contain her joy, she shouted to Song Yu, "These flowers are so beautiful! Song Yu, hurry and get the camera; let's take some photos."

Song Yu smiled and said okay.

Seeing Song Yu and Xiao Feng busy taking photos in the courtyard, Li Heng took Liu Li into the house, brewed a pot of tea, and said, "Liu Li, we've been old friends for many years. If you have something to say, just say it directly; don't beat around the bush."

Liu Li had indeed been wanting to speak the whole time but didn't know how to start. Hearing this, he immediately gathered his courage and asked, "Old Heng, is Chen Lijun secretly in love with you?"

It was indeed about Chen Lijun.

Li Heng didn't have much of a reaction upon hearing this. He poured a cup of steaming tea for the other man and said, "Do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"

Liu Li sat opposite him: "Hear the truth first."

Li Heng hesitated for a moment and said, "Sun Manning once joked with me about Chen Lijun, saying that Chen Lijun had been secretly in love with me for all three years of high school."

Hearing this, Liu Li's face turned pale. He clutched the cup tightly with both hands, lowered his head, and stared at the ground for a long time without saying a word.

With Liu Li silent, Li Heng also remained quiet. His mind was still replaying Chen Zitong's words from earlier, and he felt inexplicably stifled.

After a while, Liu Li raised his head, scratched his hair with his right hand, and said bitterly, "Sigh, I knew it. Back then, Lijun didn't go home several times during the monthly breaks; it must have been just to spend a little more time with you."

During high school, because Li Heng and Que Xinyan suffered from motion sickness and also to save the 12 yuan round-trip fare, they would go home at most once during a semester. During those three-day monthly breaks, Chen Lijun indeed basically didn't go home either, staying with Li Heng and the others.

Liu Li asked next, "What's the lie?"

Li Heng said, "Actually, whether you believe it or not, I didn't pay much attention to Chen Lijun in high school. At the time, I didn't notice it at all."

Liu Li rested his head on his hands and thought for a long time before saying dejectedly, "I understand. Your heart was entirely on Song Yu and Chen Zijin back then; it's perfectly normal that you didn't notice her."

Li Heng asked, "Then why are you here today...?"

Liu Li asked, "A while ago, she wrote you a letter. Was there anything to it?"

Li Heng nodded: "Yes."

Liu Li asked, "Did you not open it?"

Li Heng said, "I indeed didn't open it. How did you know?"

Liu Li said gloomily, "Does it need explaining? You didn't open many of the love letters you got in high school either. I could guess it, and naturally, Chen Lijun could too."

Li Heng smiled slightly and waited for him to continue.

After a moment of confrontation, Liu Li took out a bracelet and handed it to him with trembling hands: "Chen Lijun knew you would open her letter, and even if you did, you wouldn't reply. She entrusted me to give this bracelet to you."

Li Heng frowned, "This bracelet looks very familiar?"

Liu Li said, "Of course it's familiar; Lijun wore it for all three years of high school."

Li Heng was speechless. He raised his head: "Is there anything else? Say it all at once."

Unexpectedly, Liu Li stopped talking and fell into a long silence.

Li Heng's patience ran out, and he asked, "You came over just for this bracelet?"

Liu Li was unhappy and said listlessly, "What's wrong? Are you looking down on it now? I've been coveting this bracelet for a long time; why don't you give it to me?"

Li Heng took the bracelet and provoked him, "If you're not going to say it, forget it. I'll ask her myself next time I see her."

The provocation was ineffective; Liu Li seemed not to have heard him.

Drinking tea, the two grown men looking at each other felt something was off. Finally, Liu Li asked cheekily, "Do you still remember the class monitor, Liu Hui?"

Li Heng nodded, "Naturally, I remember."

Liu Li said, "Liu Hui and Chen Dan are both studying in Changshi now. Chen Dan has a boyfriend at university. Once, while having dinner by the Xiang River, Liu Hui, who had drunk half a jin of liquor, jumped into the river, but he was rescued in time by Zou Aiming and the others."

Li Heng hadn't heard of this in his previous life, but he had a deep impression of that girl Chen Dan; she had wanted to sit next to him many times in high school, but Sun Manning had chased her away every time.

He asked a question he already knew the answer to: "Is he alright?"

The reason he asked was that he had attended Liu Hui's wedding banquet in his previous life.

Liu Li said, "He's fine, just drank a stomach full of water. I used to think I was miserable, but compared to Liu Hui, I'm actually quite happy. At least Chen Lijun wrote me a letter this time."

Li Heng didn't know how to respond, fearing that if he spoke, it would be mistaken for showing off and he'd be chased and beaten by Liu Li.

He asked, "In high school, Zou Aiming and you were both secretly in love with Chen Lijun. You even competed to apply for Renmin University, but he missed it by a few points. How is Old Zou doing now?"

Liu Li said, "Aiming and I have been writing to each other, and he often asks about you guys. But your status is too high now, so he's embarrassed to contact you directly. He's living a good life now; he has a girlfriend from the city, rents a place outside, and secretly lives as a couple in his spare time. I heard the rent is paid by his girlfriend."

Speaking to the end, Liu Li's words were clearly tinged with bitterness.

The bitterness was too strong, and Li Heng laughed, "You need to eat more. You're always skin and bones; it's not easy to find a girlfriend like that."

"Bullshit. I eat two bowls a meal and it doesn't help. I eat more than you, but damn it, I just don't gain weight. My mom even asked me if life at Renmin University is very bitter, and if she should slaughter a pig to sell for money and mail it to me as food expenses." Liu Li pulled up his clothes, revealing two rows of ribs, and complained with his head lowered.

Calculating the time, Song Yu came in and called the two of them to go outside and take a group photo together.

That night, Xiao Feng and Liu Li didn't leave, and the four of them played cards together, playing "Upgrade."

During this time, Xiao Feng even said, "Li Heng, you won't blame us, will you? They say a night in spring is worth a thousand gold; we caused you to waste your time tonight."

Li Heng said happily, "Look at what you're saying; isn't that being too much of a stranger?"

After 12:00 at night, Xiao Feng and Liu Li returned to their respective rooms.

Li Heng stayed in his bedroom for a while. About an hour later, he opened his bedroom door and arrived in front of Song Yu's door.

After hesitating for a moment, he tried to push open Song Yu's door, but as expected, it wouldn't budge; it was locked from the inside.

Not giving up, he tried again, but it was the same.

At this time, Song Yu inside the door wasn't asleep. When she heard footsteps outside, she opened her eyes.

When someone tried to push the door, she slowly sat up, leaning against the headboard, staring tightly at the door.

After a while, just as Li Heng outside was about to leave, the wooden door creaked slowly and opened, just a crack.

Through the narrow gap, he saw the figure inside.

Across the door, with the help of the white snow's light outside the window, they stared at each other silently for a long time. A moment later, Song Yu turned around and returned to the bed, leaning against the headboard again.

Li Heng paused, turned sideways, squeezed through the gap, closed the door, and followed her to the bedside.

He didn't get on the bed but sat on the edge of the bed and asked, "Why aren't you asleep yet?"

Song Yu looked at him quietly without saying a word.

Li Heng said to himself, "I couldn't sleep, so I came over to take a look."

Song Yu still didn't speak. After a while, seeing her unmoved, Li Heng stood up, "Then get some rest early; I'm going back."

Song Yu's gaze fell on him, moving as his back moved. Only when he was about to pull the door open did she ask softly, "Have you ever been in bed with Mai Sui?"

Li Heng's body stiffened, standing with his back to her. He didn't expect her to ask this question.

But he kept his promise and didn't lie to her: "I've slept with her, but nothing happened."

Sleeping with pants on doesn't count, right...

No pants, zero distance doesn't count either, right...

After all, it only broke a tiny opening, not true negative distance, right...?

He consoled himself this way.

Song Yu thought of the night she and he spent at the Dongting Lake Hotel; they had also slept in the same bed, and nothing had happened either.

She asked, "You couldn't hold back with Zijin, you couldn't hold back with Xiao Han, why did you hold back with Mai Sui?"

Li Heng said, "I didn't want to force her."

Hearing this, Song Yu understood why the two hadn't ended up together. She figured it was because of herself; Mai Sui had a hurdle in her heart and couldn't let go.

Song Yu asked, "What about Yu Laoshi?"

Li Heng said, "Nothing."

Song Yu asked, "What about Zhou Shihe?"

Li Heng replied, "We are friends."

As a friend, Song Yu wasn't surprised at all.

Although she hadn't met Zhou Shihe, she could observe a thing or two from the Spring Festival Gala stage; the other party should be a proud person and couldn't possibly accept the fact that he had other women, unless...

Unless he pursued Zhou Shihe like he pursued her, eroding her heart bit by bit over a long period; otherwise, it was absolutely impossible.

At this point, Song Yu determined a basic fact: Xiao Han and Zijin leading her to Shanghai was perhaps to prevent the feelings that might arise between him and Zhou Shihe in the future.

After gaining a little, she continued to ask, "What about Wang Laoshi?"

Li Heng turned around to face her: "Which Wang Laoshi?"

Song Yu said, "The high school English teacher."

Li Heng was stunned: "Why would you suspect her?"

Song Yu said, "She once traveled with you through more than half of China. I used to think you two wouldn't have anything, but Yu Laoshi is a living example, isn't she?"

Li Heng was ashamed, "Wang Laoshi is still teaching at Shaoshi No. 1 Middle School."

Song Yu pondered for a while and then asked, "With so many women, each one taken out alone is enough to make people envious, why are you obsessed with marrying me?"

Li Heng answered from his heart: "No reason. At first sight, I wanted to marry you and bring you home."

Staring at each other across the air, Song Yu looked at him fixedly for a long time before speaking: "Come up."

A reason without a reason is the simplest and best reason, and also the purest and most powerful reason.

Song Yu was moved.

She knew this man wouldn't lie to her; what he said must be true. Therefore, she let go of the line she had been guarding and let him get on the bed.

Li Heng thought he had misheard. He was instantly excited like a child, leaning forward, and asked overjoyed, "What did you just say? Say it again."

Seeing him so cute, Song Yu smiled: "It's late; you should go back to your room and sleep early too."

"Oh, how can that be." Li Heng said, rubbing his hands, went to the bedside, took off his shoes, and got on the bed.

When he lay down, Song Yu took a rubber band off her wrist, placed it in the center of the sheet, and then lay down too.

Li Heng looked at the rubber band and asked, "Is this the '38th Parallel' from our desks when we were kids, the Chu-Han boundary?"

Song Yu said yes.

Li Heng asked, "What if I cross the boundary when I'm asleep?"

Song Yu smiled beautifully and said, "Then I'll write a letter to Mai Sui."

Li Heng felt dizzy and didn't dare to play tricks anymore.

Lying side by side, he stared at the ceiling for a long time and suddenly asked, "Why did you soften your heart toward me?"

Asking her, why did she allow him on the bed?

Song Yu also stared at the ceiling, "You racked your brains to see me; if I don't give you some sweetness, I'm afraid your new book won't be up to standard."

Hearing this, Li Heng turned sideways to look at her.

Song Yu was calm at first, but after being stared at by him for a long time, her ears slowly became a bit hot. Finally, she also turned sideways, facing the wall, and closed her eyes with her back to him.

For a moment, Li Heng had a whim to reach out and hug her, but just as his hand crossed the rubber band, it paused and then retracted.

For the rest of the time, the two didn't speak again.

Time passed minute by minute. After who knows how long, when rhythmic breathing came from behind, Song Yu's body finally softened. She turned over again, facing him, looking quietly at his face, and all distracting thoughts slowly dissipated.

She had thought many times when she was idle, what if she had met him in junior high school? Would he only have her by his side?

One night passed.

The next day, when Li Heng opened his eyes, Song Yu was already gone; she wasn't in the room.

He subconsciously reached out to touch the place where she had slept last night; the sheet was still warm, clearly she hadn't been up long.

Somewhat surprised, the rubber band was still placed in the center of the bed, intact, and hadn't moved.

He picked up the rubber band and played with it in his palm for a while, then got out of bed and put on his shoes.

His clothes were still in the room next door; he had come over in his pajamas last night.

When he stretched and opened the door, he was stunned; three pairs of eyes in the main room were looking at him in unison.

Li Heng left the room calmly, called out "Good morning," and went to the room next door.

When the door closed, Xiao Feng came back to her senses in shock and looked at Song Yu. She hadn't seen wrong just now, right? Li Heng actually came out of Song Yu's room, and he was wearing pajamas.

Although she knew the two were dating, the fact that they slept in the same bed directly shattered Xiao Feng's perception. Was this still the Song Yu who was breathtakingly beautiful and could only be looked up to?

Liu Li wasn't much better than Xiao Feng; he also stared foolishly at Song Yu, his brain unable to process it.

Facing their surprised gazes, Song Yu was calm; they were all familiar friends, so she didn't deliberately avoid it.

At the same time, courtesy demands reciprocity; she also wanted to use Xiao Feng's mouth to pass this news to Xiao Han.

As for the meaning to be conveyed, let Xiao Han imagine it herself.

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Updated first, edited later.

(More to come)

(End of chapter)