Chapter 2

"Banfeng, save me!"

A cry for help reached his ears, and Li Banfeng, deep in sleep, sat up abruptly.

Who is speaking?

All the beds were empty, save for He Yuxiu, who was squatting on the floor packing his luggage.

He Yuxiu looked up and said, "Awake?"

Li Banfeng looked at He Yuxiu: "Was it you who asked me to save you just now?"

He Yuxiu frowned: "Still groggy from sleep? Help me pack my luggage; there's no time left."

He Yuxiu was leaving, on the train tonight.

For four years of university, he had been Li Banfeng's best friend.

Li Banfeng opened his phone and took a look; it was already 3:30.

After one last meal together, it would be time to go to the station to see him off.

Li Banfeng jumped off the bed and helped He Yuxiu pack a pile of miscellaneous items.

"Do you want the toothpaste?"

"Yes!"

Li Banfeng tossed the toothpaste precisely into He Yuxiu's suitcase.

"Do you want the meal card?"

"It's yours."

Li Banfeng tossed the meal card precisely into his own drawer.

Within a five-meter range, Li Banfeng never missed when throwing things.

"Do you want the diploma?"

"No."

Li Banfeng tossed the diploma precisely into the wastebasket three meters away.

He Yuxiu admired this carefree attitude of Li Banfeng's.

He didn't even ask why He Yuxiu didn't want the diploma; he just tossed it away like that.

If you want it, you want it; if you don't, you don't. The logic was that simple, and Li Banfeng never complicated simple things.

In four years of university, He Yuxiu only had Li Banfeng as a friend because he admired Li Banfeng's temperament.

Li Banfeng also only had He Yuxiu as a friend, because Li Banfeng had a history of mental illness, and those who knew him wouldn't easily get close to him.

Li Banfeng opened a cardboard box; the box was filled with envelopes, each containing dozens of photos.

He Yuxiu loved photography; he liked using a film camera. Every time he finished taking photos, he had to rent a darkroom to develop them himself. He had accumulated a whole box of photos over four years of university.

"Do you still want these photos?"

He Yuxiu hesitated: "Pick a few good ones to take with me; throw away the ones that didn't turn out well."

Li Banfeng picked out a few envelopes and handed them to He Yuxiu: "These are all good ones."

He Yuxiu didn't check them either and put them into the suitcase.

Li Banfeng picked out a few more envelopes: "These are photos of your girlfriend; they all turned out badly, throw them away."

He Yuxiu was stunned: "Did they all turn out badly?"

Li Banfeng nodded: "She wasn't even wearing clothes, so they definitely turned out badly."

He Yuxiu snatched the photos back and put them into the suitcase.

At the school gate, at the barbecue restaurant.

He Yuxiu poured a glass of liquor for Li Banfeng: "In four years of university, there's one thing I've always wanted to ask you, but I couldn't bring myself to say it."

Li Banfeng shook his head: "I don't like men."

He Yuxiu choked on the liquor and coughed for a moment: "That's not what I wanted to ask. I meant your name, why is it called Banfeng? Is there any special meaning?"

Hearing this question, Li Banfeng's brows relaxed, the corners of his mouth turned up, revealing a smile that looked somewhat stiff.

If it were anyone else, they would try to stay away from Li Banfeng at this moment, because this was a sign of his emotional instability.

But He Yuxiu wasn't worried; Li Banfeng would show a smile when emotionally unstable, but he would show the same smile when in a good mood.

He was in a very good mood now and said with great interest: "This starts with Old Lady Wu at our orphanage. Old Lady Wu was the most cultured person in our orphanage. She had seven children under her care, and all seven of our names were given by her.

These seven names are: Banshan, Banluan, Banling, Banyai, Bangang, Banyue, and Banfeng.

You know, among mountains, the peak is the highest. I was the most outstanding among the seven, so Old Lady Wu gave me the name Banfeng."

He Yuxiu pondered for a moment: "I've met this Old Lady Wu. When you were hospitalized, she came to see you. She didn't seem to call you Li Banfeng; she called you Li Bai Sha."

Li Banfeng nodded: "Because she always made me buy cigarettes for her. During that time, she liked smoking Bai Sha, so she called me Li Bai Sha.

Before that, she called me Li Yingchun, and before that, she called me Li Furong. There was a period when life was good and she smoked good cigarettes, so she called me Li Furong."

He Yuxiu picked up a skewer of lamb kidneys: "Then why is your surname Li?"

Li Banfeng said: "Because the gatekeeper at the orphanage is surnamed Li."

He Yuxiu nodded: "Then he must be a highly respected person."

Li Banfeng shook his head: "He is Old Lady Wu's husband. He loves smoking foreign cigarettes, so he calls me Li Camel."

At dusk, the two walked out of the barbecue restaurant.

Li Banfeng held a napkin in his hand, wiped his mouth, and tossed it accurately into a trash can four or five meters away.

He Yuxiu exclaimed repeatedly: "Within five meters, never missing. We've been brothers for four years, why haven't I learned this skill of yours?"

Li Banfeng looked at the trash can and said: "Mindset, the important thing is mindset. As long as your mindset is calm..."

Li Banfeng shifted his gaze into the distance. A woman in her early thirties, wearing a gray suit, was walking toward them with a smile.

Song Laoshi.

The two hurriedly greeted her.

Song Laoshi was a mathematics teacher in the School of Science, with short hair reaching her ears, framing a round, fair face. Beneath her round-rimmed glasses were a pair of intellectual and deep beautiful eyes.

Seeing the two students, Song Laoshi's mouth turned up, revealing a smile, and two sweet dimples sank into her cheeks.

These two dimples became the fantasy on the tissues of countless male students in the School of Science.

She was as beautiful as the morning sun!

Full of vitality and a sense of security.

Li Banfeng was still watching Song Laoshi's back when He Yuxiu lowered his voice: "She has a walnut-shaped birthmark on her left peach!"

Li Banfeng was stunned: "You've seen it?"

He Yuxiu burped triumphantly: "Advanced Mathematics, Linear Algebra, Probability Theory—when have you ever seen me fail a course?

Look at the way Song Laoshi looks at me in class; can it be the same?"

"I haven't noticed the look in her eyes," Li Banfeng's gaze fixed, his expression serious, "but the birthmark you mentioned, I remember it being on the right."

"How could it be on the right? You must have remembered wrong..." He Yuxiu was also stunned, "You've seen it too?"

Li Banfeng shook his head repeatedly: "I am a decent person."

He Yuxiu was very unconvinced: "You've seen Song Laoshi's peach, how can you still be considered a decent person?"

Li Banfeng was very serious: "I looked at it decently, so I am a decent person!"

He Yuxiu was somewhat disappointed: "How could it be on the right..."

He hadn't seen Song Laoshi's peach; the birthmark thing was told to him by his girlfriend Lu Xiaolan, who had seen it with her own eyes in the changing room.

"Did Lu Xiaolan lie to me, or did I remember wrong?" He Yuxiu looked at Li Banfeng very seriously; he was truly disappointed, "I think she lied to me; she has always been lying to me."

Walking and chatting, the two walked to the downstairs of the female dormitory and picked up He Yuxiu's girlfriend, Lu Xiaolan.

Lu Xiaolan wore a ponytail, which fully displayed her exquisite features and the innocence of a young girl.

Just like the tight dress she was wearing today, it also displayed her petite and exquisite figure.

She was the most beautiful girl in the School of Science, a title recognized by eighty percent of the male students in the School of Science.

Although they were familiar with each other, He Yuxiu still couldn't help but show off to Li Banfeng: "Look at my wife, she's like a beauty who walked out of a calendar."

A calendar?

What era is this from?

He Yuxiu always had a special feeling for these old things.

But Li Banfeng had no feelings for Lu Xiaolan and couldn't be bothered to take an extra look.

"In all conscience, I still prefer Song Laoshi's figure." Li Banfeng looked at He Yuxiu very seriously.

"In all conscience, my wife also has a conscience. Conscience is not just about size; you have to make a comprehensive comparison..." He Yuxiu looked at Lu Xiaolan, who was walking out of the dormitory building, and tried hard to defend his girlfriend.

The three of them took a taxi to the Yuezhou East Station together.

Arriving at the station, Li Banfeng sent He Yuxiu to the gate; the moment of parting had arrived.

He Yuxiu said to Li Banfeng, "Brother, you've had quite a lot to drink. When you get back to the dormitory, give me a call."

Li Banfeng laughed: "Why should I call you? Are you afraid I'll get lost?"

He Yuxiu shook his head: "I'm not afraid you'll get lost. I've also had quite a lot to drink, and I'm afraid I'll fall asleep on the train. You remind me; I need to pee."

Li Banfeng didn't understand: "Do I need to remind you to pee too?"

He Yuxiu said very seriously: "What if I pee my pants!"

Li Banfeng still didn't understand: "With your wife there, would she let you pee your pants?"

He Yuxiu shook his head and said: "She sleeps better than I do; she sleeps like a dead pig. She wouldn't wake up even if the train derailed!"

Lu Xiaolan looked angry and punched He Yuxiu.

Li Banfeng also complained: "You're about to get on the train, why are you talking about derailment? That's unlucky."

After chatting for a while longer, an announcement sounded on the platform: "Train 1160 is about to start ticket checking. Please have your luggage ready and wait in Waiting Room 96."

He Yuxiu looked at Li Banfeng: "I'm leaving."

Li Banfeng let out a sob, as if he were about to shed tears.

He Yuxiu shook his head and said: "Stop pretending, it doesn't look like it at all; you can't cry at all."

In four years of university, Li Banfeng had cried many times. He had used tears to win the sympathy of his counselor and had also used them to deceive the trust of the academic affairs office, but He Yuxiu knew that Li Banfeng was pretending every time.

He was right; Li Banfeng couldn't cry at all.

Li Banfeng also felt that pretending to cry wasn't good, but as He Yuxiu's best friend, he should say a few more words at this time.

After a long silence, Li Banfeng only said one sentence: "Take care of yourself."

"You take care too." He Yuxiu picked up his suitcase and took Lu Xiaolan through the gate.

Lu Xiaolan asked casually: "Why did you ask Li Banfeng to call you?"

He Yuxiu laughed wickedly: "Are you jealous?"

Lu Xiaolan snorted: "Get lost! Why don't you marry him and live with him!"

He Yuxiu pinched Lu Xiaolan's nose: "Don't be angry. You know he has a mental illness. He drank so much tonight, and I'm a little worried about him going back alone."

Lu Xiaolan held He Yuxiu's arm and whispered: "Actually, Li Banfeng is not bad, it's just that his craziness is scary."

He Yuxiu said seriously: "Banfeng is not crazy. I accompanied him to the psychiatric department of the Third Hospital. Dr. Wang said that he is not considered crazy; he was discharged after staying for a week."

Lu Xiaolan was amused and followed He Yuxiu toward the ticket gate.

He Yuxiu repeated: "Banfeng is really not crazy, you must remember that."

PS: Shala is not crazy either, dear readers, please remember that.

Dear readers, hurry up and invest in the new book!

(End of chapter)