Chapter 73: I Like You

The private room suddenly grew coldly quiet as Li Heng stared fixedly at the cunning, vengeful girl before him.

He suddenly remembered something.

A thought stirred in him, and he asked the classic question she had once posed to him in his past life:

“Comrade Xiao Han, do you believe in pure friendship between men and women?”

Xiao Han glanced at him, unsure what trick he was up to.

“Are you going to confess to me?”

“Or are you hinting that I should confess to you?”

So she pursed her lips and probed: “Aren’t we already?”

Li Heng leaned forward slightly again. “Are we really just pure friends?”

Xiao Han nodded, heart racing but feigning calm: “Yes.”

Li Heng looked into her eyes and said slowly: “Then could you try confessing, just to test the purity?”

I like you… she instantly thought it in her heart, yet she smiled sweetly, picked up her water cup, and sipped it slowly.

After waiting a long time without a reply, Li Heng felt inexplicably disappointed. “I’m a kind person—I often give people chances, but they don’t take them.”

Xiao Han pretended not to understand and asked cheerfully: “If someone did confess to you, what would you do?”

Li Heng smiled: “Add ‘also.’”

I like you.

Add ‘also,’ and it becomes ‘I like you too’?”

Thinking of this, Xiao Han was suddenly filled with regret—as if she had missed a fortune.

The honey she had in her grasp had flown away; she was a little angry.

She silently scolded herself: Xiao Han, how long are you going to be so timid? Would it kill you to say “I like you” to him?

Even if it was a joke, you meant it from your heart!

She had mentally beaten herself up eight hundred times, yet her face still wore a sincere, bright smile.

Later, with graceful eyes, she asked again: “What if someone dislikes you?”

Based on her past-life answer, Li Heng replied without hesitation: “Add ‘also’ again.”

It was just a joke, of course. Hearing this, Xiao Han’s regret vanished instantly. She smoothed her expression and said calmly after a long silence: “Sometimes, you’re really an asshole.”

Li Heng propped his chin on his right hand, imitating her past self, and asked with amusement: “Are you upset?”

In that instant, Xiao Han sensed he was teasing her. She truly felt angry—as if her sincere, pure feelings had been insulted.

Is my love for you something you can joke about?

Yet quickly, her mood was softened by his clean face and those deep, dark eyes like still water. Her heart tightened with guilt over her earlier rudeness.

I love him so much—how could I be angry at him? He was clearly just trying to lighten the mood.

Their eyes met. With little experience, she feared another awkward silence, feared saying too much and making a mistake—she didn’t know how to respond.

Finally, cleverly, she clutched her stomach, feigning discomfort, and stayed silent.

The tactic worked.

Li Heng immediately asked with concern: “Hungry?”

Xiao Han pretended to be shy and murmured “Mm.”

Li Heng stood up: “The food hasn’t arrived yet—it’s been waiting too long. I’ll go urge the kitchen.”

But at the door, he held the handle and turned back to ask: “Besides the dishes we ordered, is there anything else you really want to eat?”

This scene felt familiar—it was exactly what he used to ask Chen Zijin all the time.

Back then, she had been envious and jealous.

Now deeply moved, she longed to shout: You just misled me earlier! Punish yourself by treating me to soda and barbecue!

Against her will, slightly jealous, she blurted out: “Mr. Li, can I eat whatever I want?”

Li Heng said: “Of course.”

Xiao Han imitated Chen Zijin’s old words: “No need to add more dishes—I want soda, and I want barbecue from the school gate.”

Simple enough. Li Heng asked: “Which kind?”

Xiao Han’s right hand curled like a kitten’s paw in the air, grinning as she uttered Chen Zijin’s most common three words: “Whatever.”

Whatever…

Such familiar words—now spoken by someone else.

Li Heng paused, slowly realizing: this girl had secretly gotten jealous again.

Leaving the private room, he first hurried to the kitchen to urge the food, then ran to the convenience store to buy soda.

As luck would have it, he ran into Liu Li and Zhang Zhiyong.

Liu Li leaned over: “Huh? Li Heng, aren’t you supposed to be treating Xiao Han to dinner? Why are you here?”

Li Heng didn’t deny it and asked casually: “How do you know?”

Liu Li said: “Old Yong told me. But I also saw it myself—I was playing basketball on the field and saw you and Xiao Han leave school together.”

Hearing this, Li Heng didn’t bother probing further. Thinking of free labor he shouldn’t waste, he immediately dragged Zhang Zhiyong and Liu Li to buy many kinds of soda and barbecue back to the private room.

For Xiao Han, he was now very willing to spend his few coins.

Since this girl was jealous, and since she said “whatever,” I’ll buy one of every kind—see if you dare say “whatever” again!

How dare you? I’ll make you regret it!

Seeing the eight or nine kinds of soda and the twenty-plus types of barbecue laid out on the table, Xiao Han was stunned!

Her first thought was to scold him: Mr. Li, are you an idiot? Where did you get so much money to waste like this? How can you possibly eat all this?

Her second thought was to immediately pull out her wallet, turn to Zhang Zhiyong, and ask with responsibility:

“Zhang Zhiyong, how much money did Li Heng borrow from you?”

Before Li Heng could speak, Zhang Zhiyong—who had been battered all day—teased her: “I lent this money to my brother. What’s it to you?”

Xiao Han insisted on shoving the money into Zhang Zhiyong’s hand and said clearly: “Of course it’s my business—it’s my personal matter with Mr. Li. If outsiders get involved, I can’t even eat…”

Before she finished speaking, she realized she had accidentally let her feelings slip out. She lowered her head, turned away in panic, and repeatedly tucked stray strands of hair behind her ear—so embarrassed she wished she could dig a hole and crawl into it.

“Huh? Personal matter?” Zhang Zhiyong and Liu Li both widened their eyes, stunned.

After a long silence, they both raised their thumbs in admiration toward Li Heng, then slunk away dejectedly.

Once they left and the door clicked shut, Li Heng finally realized and said:

“Comrade Xiao Han, you’ve been had. I paid for all the soda and barbecue myself.”

Xiao Han frowned, smiling wryly: “Did you rob a bank? Or sell your face? Where did you get so much money?”

Li Heng feigned annoyance: “In your eyes, am I really so useless? Can’t I earn money honestly besides this face?”

Xiao Han tried to stay calm, but her own words made her too flustered to be calm:

“Mr. Li, be grateful—at least your face is still popular with girls.”

After that, she ignored him entirely, dared not look up, afraid that meeting his eyes would break her composure. Instead, she focused entirely on enjoying the soda and barbecue, taking one bite of each.

Whenever she wanted to pretend calmness but found it impossible, she would bury herself in a task—this quickly plunged her into a naturally clueless state, numb to everything around her.

Li Heng gently pushed her shoulder.

She blushed, muttered “Mmmph, mmmph,” swaying side to side like a roly-poly toy under his push, perfectly embodying her talent for feigned stupidity.

Seeing her adorable expression, Li Heng grinned sincerely from the heart, then thought for a moment and told her everything about his writing.

Xiao Han listened in silence for a long time, suppressing any sign of delight, and didn’t ask how much money he’d earned.

She listened quietly, then, with good sense, offered her congratulations: “Congratulations then—you’ll have another wave of girls falling for you.”

Though quiet in the second half of the meal, it lasted a long time. The two sat peacefully until they were full, even stuffed, before leaving.

As they settled the bill and left Lao Liu Restaurant, Li Heng encountered Sun Man and Mai Sui.

Sun Man waved from afar: “Hey, Li Heng, wait up.”

Hearing this, Li Heng told Xiao Han: “Wait a moment—I’ll be right back.”

Xiao Han glanced at Sun Man and Mai Sui with the corner of her eye and smiled sweetly: “I’ll wait for you at the school gate newspaper stand.”

“Alright.” Li Heng agreed without hesitation.

As Xiao Han crossed the street and neared the newspaper stand, she heard a middle-aged man ask the vendor:

“Boss Jia, have the new issues of ‘Shouhuo’ and ‘Shiyue’ arrived this month?”

‘Shouhuo’ magazine?

The magazine where honey submitted his novel?

She instantly perked up and eavesdropped on their conversation.

Boss Jia replied: “You’re lucky, Comrade Sun. ‘Shouhuo’ just arrived. You’re the third person to buy it. Same as usual—one of each?”

“Yes, one of each.” The middle-aged official counted out the money and walked off with the two magazines.

Xiao Han kept watching the three people over there while asking the vendor:

“Uncle, is ‘Shouhuo’ magazine really three yuan per copy? Is it famous?”

Beautiful women always brought visual pleasure—the vendor patiently explained:

“Famous? Of course. ‘Renmin Wenxue’ in the north, ‘Shouhuo’ in the south—both are national-level literary journals, renowned far and wide.”

Xiao Han’s eyes sparkled. She asked eagerly: “So publishing a novel in ‘Shouhuo’ is a huge achievement?”

The vendor immediately raised his thumb: “Absolutely! Anyone who publishes in ‘Shouhuo’ is a dragon among men—a genius, a top-notch talent!”

Hearing this, the last trace of shyness in Xiao Han’s heart was swept away by overwhelming joy.

She thought: This man is actually kind.

…

On the other side.

Li Heng walked toward Sun Man and Mai Sui and asked, “Have you eaten?”

“Yes, ate too much, came out to buy something and walk it off.”

Sun Man glanced at Xiao Han nearby and asked curiously, “How did you end up with Xiao Han?”

“What do you mean ‘end up with’? We’re friends, classmates—we’ve known each other for six years,” Li Heng replied.

Sun Man felt a bit embarrassed, stuck out her tongue, and said, “The principal’s house is right next door to ours. I got you two scholarship photos and the negatives from the music teacher.”

“Here, my pockets are stuffed—I almost threw them away by accident while eating. You keep them yourself.”

Normally, students didn’t get photos or negatives—this was clearly an extra perk from the wealthy woman.

Li Heng took the photos, glanced at them, and smiled: they looked great—he was very photogenic. “Thanks, Comrade Rich Lady.”

“No need to thank me. Go keep your classmate company. We’re leaving,” Sun Man waved, linking arms with Mai Sui.

Mai Sui, who had said nothing until now, gave him a small smile—her farewell.

Crossed the street, Li Heng showed Xiao Han the photos: “Scholarship pictures.”

Then added, “I ate too much. Want to walk around campus? Get some fresh air?”

Xiao Han’s mind was entirely on the newsstand. She shook her head: “No. Please walk me back to the dorm.”

Li Heng was surprised. He joked, “Lots of people want to walk with me, but I’ve never given anyone the chance.”

Xiao Han smirked as she headed toward the school gate: “You’re such a smooth talker. Chen Zijin used to walk with you in first and second year. Last week, you were strolling with Song Yu by the rock garden.”

Li Heng: “…”

She never brought them up—but when she did, she named the two most sensitive people.

Was she doing it on purpose—or not? He couldn’t tell.

Inside the school, past the big playground, the classroom building, and the rock garden cafeteria, they reached the girls’ dorm.

Ten meters from the stairwell entrance, she stopped, turned, and thanked him: “Thank you for treating me today. Goodbye.”

In that instant, Li Heng slipped the money for the barbecue and soda into her pocket. “We’re this familiar—you’re too polite. See you soon.”

Xiao Han stared at her pocket for a moment, then didn’t take the money out. She turned and walked straight toward the stairwell.

But halfway there, she paused, turned back, and said: “Mr. Li, I need to confess something to you.”

Li Heng was curious: “What? You’re using the word ‘confess’?”

She bit her lip, raised her eyes to meet his, and gathered courage: “Last time at the cafeteria entrance—I bumped into Song Yu on purpose.”

Li Heng said nothing. He just stared at her.

Under his gaze, she felt inexplicably uneasy. She steadied herself and continued:

“I just wanted to interrupt you two. I didn’t expect to knock over the spoon and the food onto the floor…”

Li Heng said: “I know.”

“Huh? You… you know?” Xiao Han’s face paled. She felt as if she’d turned transparent—no secrets left in front of him.

Li Heng blinked: “What else did you think? Do you believe stumbling into me for a free meal is that easy? Not everyone has the qualification.”

Hearing this, Xiao Han wanted to sink into the ground.

She stared at her toes for a moment, then, crushed under unbearable pressure, couldn’t hold on any longer. She looked up, gave him a sweet smile, and turned and ran!

Like a gust of wind, she vanished into the stairwell.

So fast she could’ve competed in the Olympic women’s 100-meter final—Li Heng was humbled.

Inside the stairwell, Xiao Han didn’t appear on the second-floor corridor right away. Someone was watching below—she had no courage to show herself in his sight.

At the corner, she pressed herself against the wall, touched her face—redder than burning charcoal—and cursed herself: Now it’s done! So embarrassing! I’ve lost all dignity! He knows I like him—and that I’m jealous of Song Yu.

After a while, she used her right hand to forcibly pull her left hand away from her face and comforted herself: What’s so shameful? Let him know—I do like him.

No matter what, after confessing to him, the air she breathed felt freer than ever before.

She hid in the stairwell for about twenty minutes, then cautiously peeked outside. When she saw he was truly gone, the pressure in her chest lifted.

Soon after, she sprinted toward the newsstand outside school and exclaimed excitedly: “Boss, give me a copy of ‘Shouhuo’! No—two copies!”

The boss, who had been feeding a three-year-old child, put down his chopsticks and bowls, handed her two copies.

She pulled out money, placed it on the counter, rolled up the magazines, and hurried off—like a thief afraid of being caught.

Watching her leave with the books, the newsstand boss called after her: “Miss, I need to give you change!”

She smiled, eyes crinkling: “Uncle, I’m happy today. Keep the change. Buy the kid a candy.”

Then she ran off into the wind.

…

In February, winter gradually faded. The weather in Shaoshan improved.

By month’s end, the sun was warm and pleasant, dappled light filtering through the leaves, bringing freshness and calm.

Just back from a school meeting at noon, Song Shi first stopped at the general store to buy a bottle of soy sauce and a bottle of vinegar—his home supply was gone. His wife had asked him to bring new ones back; his daughter Yu Bao was coming home for dinner, and he needed them for the big dishes.

Carrying the bottles and jars, Song Shi arrived at the newsstand on time—it was the day the bimonthly magazine “Shouhuo” arrived. He had few hobbies, but reading books and newspapers, writing articles—these were habits he’d kept for years.

Hmm. And smoking.

Of all reading, he loved “People’s Literature” and “Shouhuo” most. Every new issue had to be bought immediately—or he’d feel restless, hollow, as if he’d lost something precious.

“Professor Song, you’re right on time. I just unsealed the package of ‘Shouhuo.’”

They were old acquaintances. The man was a university professor with a position—the newsstand owner held him in high regard. He hurriedly set down his work and rolled a cigarette for him himself.

Song Shi lit it, took a deep drag, and sighed: “Old Zheng, your tobacco suits me best. Better than Baisha.”

Zheng the boss boasted: “I can’t offer much else, but this tobacco? It’s strong. My wife brought it back from her family in Chenzhou—homegrown tobacco leaves, no pesticides.”

Song Shi said: “Next time your wife visits her family, ask her to bring me some. Price is negotiable.”

Zheng quickly waved his hand: “We’ve known each other this long—no talk of money. If you don’t mind the lowliness, I’ve got plenty at home. Come by tonight and I’ll give you some.”

“Alright, good!”

They chatted, finished one cigarette, bought and sold books, then went back to their own tasks.

Back home, Song Shi immediately saw his daughter and wife plucking duck feathers in the courtyard.

“Dad, you’re back.”

“Mm. The college entrance exam’s in a few months. Is your study pressure heavy?”

Song Yu smiled: “Not too bad.”

“Good.” Song Shi nodded. His daughter was his heart’s treasure—he doted on her.

His wife Jiang Yue said: “Our daughter won another top-prize scholarship. She said once the money comes, she’ll buy us new clothes. Old Song, you’re lucky.”

Song Shi smiled, poured himself some tea, took a large sip, and asked, “Still you three winning the top humanities scholarship—Xiao Feng and Mai Sui?”

Song Yu nodded, then shook her head: “Xiao Feng still is. Mai Sui was replaced—by 0.1 point.”

Jiang Yue looked up: “Just 0.1 point?”

Song Yu gave a soft “Mm.”

Jiang Yue asked: “Who replaced her? That Luo something-jie?”

Song Shi corrected: “Luo Zhijie. He won a top-prize scholarship once.”

Song Yu shook her head slightly: “Not Luo Zhijie. Someone new. Li Heng won it.”

“Li Heng?”

Jiang Yue and Song Shi exchanged glances. “That name sounds familiar. Old Song, do you remember?”

Song Shi thought hard: “I think I’ve heard it… but I can’t place it.”

They both turned to look at their daughter.

Their family’s harmony came from sharing everything—big or small—enjoying the exchange.

Song Yu hesitated, then said: “He’s Chen Zijin’s boyfriend.”

“Oh! That’s him! Now I remember! No wonder it sounded familiar. To be dating this early? Rare.” Jiang Yue suddenly understood.

Song Shi took another sip of tea and nodded: “I saw them walking by the Zijiang River. Tall and thin, quiet, not as open as Zijin.”

Jiang Yue asked curiously: “Chen Zijin went to Beijing. Are they still dating?”

This question stumped Song Yu. She didn’t know how to answer.

Were they still together?

They barely communicated. The dynamic felt wrong—not like normal lovers.

Had they broken up?

But Zijin clearly still had deep feelings for Li Heng—every letter and call included long questions about him.

Seeing her daughter silent, Jiang Yue asked: “What? Didn’t work out? Broke up?”

“Ding ling ling… ding ling ling…”

At that moment, the living room phone rang abruptly. Song Yu had a feeling it was Chen Zijin— they’d agreed to call once a month.

It was already the end of the month, and the call hadn’t come yet. Maybe today.

As Song Shi moved toward the house, Song Yu quickly washed her hands and called out: “Dad, I’ll get it.”

Song Shi had been eager to read his new “Shouhuo.” He stopped, sat in a rattan chair, and opened the magazine, reading contentedly.

The early spring ducks were molting—fine feathers sprouting like bamboo shoots after rain, too numerous to count. Jiang Yue had wanted to ask her husband for help, but when she saw the word “Shouhuo” on the cover, she swallowed her words.

Not only that—she stopped talking entirely.

She knew her husband loved literature. He submitted work occasionally, though never accepted by major journals—only provincial and city newspapers.

“Huh? There’s a new short story on the cover this time.”

Before reading each book, Song Shi had a small habit: he would first flip through the table of contents and the entire book from start to finish, much like a primary school student just receiving a Chinese textbook.

“‘Alive’?”

“Recommended personally by Old Man Ba?”

“That’s rare.”

Song Shi muttered a few words, immediately becoming highly intrigued—he was very curious what made ‘Alive’ so special that Old Man Ba would praise it so highly.

“When I was ten years younger than I am now, I acquired a lazy profession: collecting folk ballads in the countryside…”

After reading only the first page, Song Shi was completely immersed.

ps: Updated 12,500 characters—seeking monthly tickets! Seeking subscriptions!

(End of chapter)