CH 84

Chu Yu and Lu Shi stayed in A City for several days.

The two people in the Lu family who could take charge were in a situation; there was no news on one while the other was seriously ill in bed. The employees at the bottom were not aware of it but the executives were unstable, and they were all waiting to see what was to come.

As the only grandson of Lu Zhaohe and the only son of Lu Shaochu, Lu Shi was the sole legitimate heir of the Lu family both in name and reality, and he was already an adult.

As a result, after various procedures, many shares and most of the property in the hands of Lu Zhaohe and Lu Shaochu were ultimately transferred to Lu Shi’s name.

Just as everyone was spectating how the recently-turned adult Lu Shi was going to do things, two professional managers hired by him arrived in A City. In addition to the stable transfer of shares, the Lu family was still in power so there were no unnecessary slip-ups. Those who futilely tried to take action during the Lu clan’s turmoil all halted their thoughts.

Chu Yu was talking to Lin Wangxi on the phone at the balcony of the hotel.

“My dad and I have been following the Lu family’s affairs throughout the entire process, my dad even thought about whether we should take advantage of this unrest in the Lu family and make a fortune. You know, looting a burning house is always an opportunity not to be missed. I didn’t expect that Lu Shi, a high school student, would actually be able to manage the situation. Speaking of which, did Lu Shi look for those two professional managers by himself, or did someone give him advice?”

“No one instructed him.” Chu Yu gazed at the person lying on the bed in the bedroom through the glass windows and continued, “He decided it himself.”

“It was indeed work done beautifully. I went to check the resumes of these two professional managers and guessed that Lu Shi wanted to take advantage of this time to let the managers stand on stage while he hid behind the scenes, making drastic changes on the staleness within the Lu clan.”

“When he’s a few years older and can convince the masses, he’ll then sit in that position of power. The entire Lu family will inevitably be under his control and there will be no more restraints and obstacles in his path.”

Lin Wangxi guessed correctly.

Lu Shi had asked Chu Yu’s opinion when choosing the managers. This was their main consideration when the two of them finally agreed on the candidates.

After Lin Wangxi finished speaking, she changed her tone again and asked, “How is your relationship with him now?”

Chu Yu replied without hesitation, “It’s very good.”

“Then what I say next may incite disharmony between you.” Lin Wangxi asked with a smile, “Do you want to hear it? If you don’t want to hear it, then I won’t say it.”

Chu Yu more or less guessed what Lin Wangxi would say. “Please say it, Sister Lin.”

“Okay, I’ll say it.”

Lin Wangxi’s tone became a bit serious. “I told you earlier that my dad and I have been watching the Lu clan’s affairs, and we found a lot of suspicious things during this period.”

“The Lu clan has stable roots and a good reputation, but this time, a wild wind set leaves rolling. First, Fang Weiyun had a mishap, then Lu Shaochu also met a mishap, the Fang family followed after, and finally, Elder Lu was paralyzed and even became unable to speak.”

“There’s no definite evidence, but my dad and I both believe that in this series of events, Lu Shi must have done something.”

Lin Wangxi took a breath, “What I want to say is that this Lu Shi is young but his heart is very shrewd and his methods are ruthless. He mustn’t be underestimated. You, who’s a friend of his, must be cautious.”

After hanging up the phone, Chu Yu looked at the rising sun on the horizon and stretched his body.

He thought of that time at Qingchuan River. Beneath the dim light, Lu Shi said, I’m not a good person, and soon, I might even carry infamy. The love I can give you is heavy, dirty, and with many things that will hurt you. Despite this, do you still want to be with me? Chu Yu.

He remembered every word clearly.

How did he respond back then?

—I do.

Chu Yu thought that even if the time was changed to the present and he was asked this question again, he would still answer I do.

He was willing to be bound to Lu Shi, willing to accompany him in the swamp and be stained with mud, and also willing to join him in climbing out of that dark abyss step by step.

He wanted to protect him, support him, pull him up, and witness with him that next year would indeed be better.

It will get better in the future.

After standing in the cool morning breeze for a while, Chu Yu entered the bedroom from the balcony.

The lights weren’t on in the bedroom, there were only the first rays of the morning sun coming in from the windows.

Lu Shi’s breathing was even; he didn’t wake up.

Chu Yu stepped on the carpet to the side of the bed, pulled the quilt off Lu Shi’s body, and shouted loudly, “Lu Shi, Lu-Ge, Lu-Shen, get up! Have breakfast with me!”

As soon as his words fell, Chu Yu wasn’t paying attention and his wrist was grasped. He fell onto the bed unprepared, and then was embraced by Lu Shi.

Lu Shi pulled down his collar and placed his shoulders to Chu Yu’s mouth. With closed eyes and a hoarse early morning voice, he said, “Want to suck blood? Bite, this is your breakfast.”

Chu Yu was actually not hungry, but when he heard Lu Shi’s voice and was enveloped in Lu Shi’s breath, he couldn’t say anything to refuse and could only bite down in compliance to the other’s words.

Before Chu Yu could taste the sweet taste of blood after licking the open wound, Lu Shi pinched his chin and kissed him.

When they returned to school, it was just in time for the third monthly exam.

Dream-Ge wondered, “Lu-Shen has been absent from school for half a month, right? Then the question is, do we have a slight chance to surpass Lu-Shen this coming monthly exam?”

Fang Ziqi, with a pair of dark circles under his eyes, looked askance at Dream-Ge, “Dreaming comes faster.”

Li Hua added, “Dreaming is a bit difficult, daydreaming is the fastest.”

When the results were announced, Dream-Ge stood in front of the posted performance records and sighed. “Tsk tsk tsk, as it turns out, Lu-Shen is a mountain my fellow Jianing Private School students can’t climb! What a shadow1!”

Old Ye came in through the door at that moment and asked, finding it odd, “Student Luo Jiaxuan, how did you know we were going to climb a mountain?”

Dream-Ge was stunned. “What do you mean climbing a mountain?”

Old Ye was excited. “Spring outing! Hiking! Being on top of a mountain, and with one look seeing smaller mountains below!”

Chu Yu turned his head to look at the dazzling sunshine outside the window, very puzzled—isn’t the spring in his mind and the spring defined by Old Ye too different?

He struggled, “Teacher, such high temperatures and such a big sun proves that spring is already gone forever, now is not a fortunate time for a spring outing!”

Dream-Ge raised his hand. “I’ll translate! School Flower means that such a big sun will tan your face! It will make you ugly!”

Chu Yu gave Dream-Ge a look—you are very smart!

“Although the weather is getting warmer, we have to work hard to catch the tail of spring! Don’t you think so? The most important thing is that you’re about to move on to your third year of high school. When you become third years, you’ll find that it’s absolutely difficult to find time for a spring outing. So, dear students, tell me again, are you going to the spring outing?”

“YES!”

After answering, Zhang Yueshan scratched the back of his head. “So, this is our last high school group outing?”

“That’s more or less what I meant!” Old Ye nodded. “So, you can’t be picky, everyone will go, let’s go to the mountaintop and take a group photo!”

On the day of the spring outing, it wasn’t too sunny. When class A arrived at the foot of the mountain, there were still a few drops of rain, so it really was a tiny bit like spring for a while.

Old Ye had changed into dark sportswear, carrying his thermos cup that never left his body, telling stories as he walked.

“Let me tell you about the mountain we’re going to, which is called Phoenix Mountain. Why is it called Phoenix Mountain? Does anyone know?”

Dream-Ge replied loudly, “I don’t know! Teacher, please tell us!”

“Okay okay okay, I like student Luo Jiaxuan’s answer. If all of you had known, what fun would I have with storytelling?”

“According to legend, Qingchuan River flooded and submerged 800 li2 of farmland in the past. A cultivator named Zhao Mingzhao came to control the water with a horsetail whisk and within a hundred days, the river cleared up as he also beheaded the evil dragon in the river. On the day when the river flowed unimpeded, he stood on this mountain and leisurely played the flute.”

“Unexpectedly and suddenly! A ray of seven colored light rose into the sky, and a clear, melodious chirp was heard, then an extremely beautiful phoenix could be seen coming from the sky. It flew around Zhao Mingzhao for a full nine circles. Afterwards, everyone saw Zhao Mingzhao soaring up to the sky riding the phoenix.”

After Old Ye finished speaking, he pointed to the direction of the top of the mountain. “The Taoist temple above is dedicated to this true monarch. It was said that this Taoist temple has been very effective since ancient times. Of course, these are superstitions and we mustn’t fully place our belief on it. Think that we’re simply looking at a historical site.”

“Because the element of this immortal Taoist belongs to water, the main color of the Taoist temple is black. There are also stone tablets left by ancient literati and writers around, everyone can take a look. “

Climbing halfway up the mountain, Old Ye, disliking the students’ extremely slow hiking pace, took the lead forward and was not seen anymore after a while.

Chu Yu had already given up on treatment3. He pulled Lu Shi to the end of the line and walked up very slowly. If he came across a flower he’d never seen before, he would approach closely to observe it.

He has been a little uneasy these days.

Although he tries not to think too much, he often had nightmares in the middle of the night, dreaming that Lu Shi couldn’t be found, or directly dreaming that Lu Shi was dead.

After being awakened by these nightmares, Chu Yu would be lost and confused, subconsciously probing Lu Shi’s breath with his hands and pressing his ear against Lu Shi’s chest to listen to his heartbeat.

Only during times like these would the fear caused by his nightmares calm down again.

Everything was akin to settled dust, but Lu Shi didn’t seem to have changed at all compared to before.

Every day, the routine was still beginning class and finishing class, going to school and leaving school, as well as doing questions and exams, but Chu Yu had sensitively discovered that, sometimes, he would catch a glimpse of an emptiness in Lu Shi’s eyes.

As if the central core, the goal, had suddenly disappeared. For a period of time, the fulcrum of his existence couldn’t be found.

Chu Yu didn’t know what to do.

He could only clumsily show his dependence to Lu Shi repeatedly, deliberately, obviously and bluntly.

Needing to sleep next to each other and even hug. Needing Lu Shi’s help to put on his clothes and pants. Even with blow drying his hair after taking a bath, he would trouble Lu Shi to do it.

He was silently expressing towards Lu Shi, I need you, I depend on you, and I can’t live without you.

I must never lose you.

After climbing for an unknown amount of time and when Chu Yu was feeling that he couldn’t lift his legs anymore, they finally reached the top of the mountain.

Like what Old Ye said, there was a Taoist temple on the mountaintop. But unlike imagination, this reportedly very ancient Taoist temple occupied a not so huge area. The building was dilapidated, and the eaves even have clumps of dense weeds.

The surrounding trees were lush, there were clear springs and streams, the butterflies were dancing and birds were singing. It does indeed give the implication of being ‘far from the mundane world’.

Chu Yu stood in front of the wooden threshold of the Taoist temple. He hesitated before asking Lu Shi in a low voice, “Say, if I step in, would the true monarch enshrined inside send down a thunderbolt and zap me, a blood-sucking little monster?”

Imagining the scene, Chu Yu trembled. “My face will be scorched black if I’m struck by lightning, and my hair will explode. It’ll be too ugly!”

After listening to him speak, Lu Shi said, “I’ll bring you in. If you’re really going to be struck by lightning, then it better just strike me instead.”

Having said that, he took Chu Yu’s wrist and they entered the Taoist temple together.

The students who arrived at the summit had gathered around the ancient well behind the Taoist temple and rested under an old ginkgo tree first. As for those who were slower than Chu Yu and Lu Shi, it was estimated that they’ve just passed the halfway point of the mountain not long ago.

Therefore, for the time being, there was no one else inside the entire Taoist temple except a Taoist priest.

While wandering around in the Taoist temple, reading the engraved monuments, Chu Yu found that in front of the main hall, there was a square basket made of bamboo strips with black strings placed inside it.

He was curious. “Master, may I ask what this is?”

The white-bearded Taoist priest clearly and gently said, “Those ropes have been woven into a bracelet that can be worn on the wrist. The ones made longer can be used as a necklace. You can hold the rope and make a wish in front of the true monarch and then wear the braided rope on your body, that’s all.”

Chu Yu never believed in this type of thing, but looking at the black braided rope, he thought about it and asked, “How much is it?”

“How old are you?”

“Eighteen.”

“Then I will sell you this braided rope for 18 yuan.”

After paying the money, Chu Yu held the black rope, entered the main hall, and made a sincere wish.

After he came out, he said his thanks and pulled Lu Shi under the roof at the corner.

Chu Yu silently held up Lu Shi’s hand and tied the black rope bracelet around it.

Cold-white skin and blueish-green blood vessels, adorned with a simple black rope; it looked very good.

Lu Shi waited for Chu Yu to fasten the rope before asking, “Did the wish you made have something to do with me?”

“Mn. Plus, only you can help me realize that wish of mine. Therefore, this bracelet must be worn by you.”

Chu Yu made sure the bracelet was fastened firmly before he continued, “My wish is very extravagant, even if it’s an immortal, there’s no way for them to help me realize it. Only you can.”

Lu Shi looked down at him, “What wish?”

Chu Yu’s eyes felt inexplicably sour as he stubbornly gazed at Lu Shi. “My wish is that you don’t leave me.”

For a time, apart from the breeze, birdsongs, and the distant voices of people, there was no other sound.

Lu Shi understood these simple words.

The ancient eaves were warped upwards, adapting the style of flying eaves. The pillars’ lacquer paint was mottled on the surface and there were even a few weeds growing in the junctions with flowers at its tops.

Under the eaves, Lu Shi stared at Chu Yu’s reddish eyes. After a long time, he spoke, “I’ve once thought that after this mistake is over, there would be no point in living, because it would be really difficult to do so.”

He spoke very softly.

Countless nights of inability to sleep, guilt, struggle and self-loathing that couldn’t be dispelled, a dark and gloomy childhood…

Up until this moment, they have been turned into one phrase: “difficult”4.

Chu Yu listened with a distinct sourness at the tip of his nose.

He vaguely felt a great discomfort in his heart, like a blunt knife had cut through.

Lu Shi’s expression turned calmer and calmer while his soft voice resembled the warm wind outside the canopy of the eaves.

“But then, how can I be willing to leave you?”

The author has something to say: Here’s a flower that blooms on a wild weed in the shape of a heart as my love for you~

Can you smell the end～

Xena notes

update on Xena irl

Refers to a psychological shadow.

1 li is 500 meters.

Meaning Chu Yu has accepted his fate

Meowmiao: Probably refers to the fact that he is too tired to catch up to the front

Other translations: Hard to bear, unendurable. T-T